SEEING 

OUR  MISSIONS 

ACROSS 

THE   SEAS 


BXS&78 
.76.A57^ 


tihmry  of  t1\e  trheological  ^eminarjp 

PRINCETON  •  NEW  JERSEY 


PRESENTED  BY 

Rufus  K.  LeFevre 
.7(1>.A57Z 


Seeing  Our  Missions 
Across  The  Seas 


THE  FOREIGN  MISSIONARY  SOCIETY 

UNITED  BRETHREN 

IN  CHRIST 

DAYTON,  OHIO 


Post  Office  Addresses  of  United  Brethren  Foreign  Missionaries 

Rev.  A.  T.  Bovrard.  D.Dm  Blahop  ot  the  Forelsrn  SlUslon  Dlatriet. 

••rvic* 

beeran  SnSRRA.   LBONB,   WKST   AFRICA. 

1906  Hursh.  Rev.  E.  M.,  Supt.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1907  Hursh,  Mr».  B.  M.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1904  Akin,  A.  Eliza,  Taiama.  Sierra  Leone,  Went  Africa, 

1914  Clipplngrer,  Lula,  Moyamba,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 
1894  Eaton,  Minjiie   E.,  Taiama,   Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1915  Emery,  Rev.  E.  W.,  Shenge,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1915  Emery,  Mrs.  E.  W.,  Shenge,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1916  Evans,  Rev.  D.  M.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1915  Evans,  Mrs.  D.  M.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1900  Origps,  Zenora  B.,  M.  D.,  Rotifunk,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

191 3  Hoerner,  L.  May,  Moyamba,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1914  Hoerner,  Jessie,  Moyamba,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1907  Kingman,  Rev.  B.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1908  Musselman,  Rev.  J.  F.,  Rotifunk,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa, 
1907  Musselman,  Mrs.  J.  P.,  Rotifunk,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1916  Ney,  Emma  J.,  Taiama,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 
1916  Odle,  Etta,  Moyamba,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 
1916  Thomas,  H.  H.,  Rotifunk,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1899  Todd,  Mrs.  Delia,  Rotifunk,  Sierra,  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1915  Vesper,  Nora  May,  Rotifunk,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1912  Weidler,  Professor  D.  E.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

1915  Weidler,  Mrs.  D.  B.,  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 
1910  Wimmer,  Rev.  W.  N.,  Hangha,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 
1910  Wimmer,  Mrs.  W.  N,,  Hanglia,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa. 

CHINA. 

1897  Ward,   Rev.  H.   B.,   Superintendent,   Canton,   China. 

1897  Ward,  Mrs.  E.  B.,  Canton,  China, 

1892  Bigler.  Regina  M.,  M.  D..  Canton.  China. 

1912  Davis,  Rev.  P.  W.,  Siu  Lam,  Heung  Shan  DlsL,  via  Canton.  China. 

1912  Davis,  Mrs.  F.  W.,  Siu  Lara,  Heung  Shan  Dist.,  via  Canton,  China. 

1914  Dick,  May,  Canton,  China. 

1916  Funk,  Rev.  C.  A.,  Canton,  China, 
1916  Punk,  Mrs.  C.  A.,  Canton,  China. 

1916  Kintigh,  Professor  S.  W.,  Canton,  China. 

1916  Kintigh,  Mrs.  S.  W.,  Canton,  China. 

1905  Myers,  Belle,  Siu  Lam,  Heung  Shan  Dist.,  via  Canton,  China. 

1905  Oldt,  Frank,  M.   D.,  Siu  Lam,  Heung  Shan  Dlst.,  China. 

1906  Oldt,  Mrs.  Frank,  Siu  Lam,  Heung  Shan  Dlst.,  China. 

1914  Potts,  Hortense,  Siu  Lam,  Heung  Shan  Dlst.,  via  Canton,  China. 

1912  Shoop,  Rev.  C.  W.,  Canton,  China. 

1912  Shoop,  Mrs.  C.  W.,  Canton,  China. 

JAPAN. 

1901  Cosand,    Rev.    Joseph,    Supt..    1929    Shimo   Shlbuya,   Tokyo    Fu, 
Japan. 

1916  Hayes,  Rev.  W.  H.,  1912  Shimo  Shlbuya,  Tokyo  Pu,  Japan. 

1916  Hayes,  Mrs.  W.  H.,  1912  Shimo  Shibuya,  Tokyo  Fu,  Japan. 

1900  Knlpp,  Rev.  J.  B..  18  Mia  No  Waki,  Okazakicho,  Kyoto,  Japan. 

1900  Knlpp,  Mrs.  J.  B.,  18  Mlya  No  Waki,  Okazakicho,  Kyoto.  Japan. 
1912  Moore.  Ellen.  1929  Shimo  Shibuya,  Tokyo  Fu.  Japan. 

1907  Shlvely,  Rev.  B.  P.,  Nashinokl-Cho,  Kyoto,  Japan. 
1907  Shlvely,  Mrs.   B.   P.,  Nashlnoki-Cho,   Kyoto,  Japan. 

PORTO  RICO. 

1901  Drury,  Rev.  P.  W.,  Superintendent,  Ponce,  Porto  Rico. 
1901  Drury,  Mrs.  P.  W.,  Ponce,  Porto  Rico. 

1907  Caldwell,  Rev.  L  B.,  Juana  Diaz,  Porto  Rico. 

1907  Caldwell.  Mrs.  L  B.,  Juana  Diaz,  Porto  Rico. 

1908  Mohler,  Rev.  C.  L,  Yauco,  Porto  Rico. 
1908  Mohler,  Mrs.  C.  I.,  Yauco,  Porto  Rico. 

1907  Reed.  Elizabeth,  Ponce,  Porto  Rico. 

PHILIPPINE    ISLANDS. 

1908  Wlddoes,  Rev.  H.  W..  Superintendent,  San  Fernando,  Union,  P.  I. 
1903  Wlddoes,  Mrs.   H.   W.,   San   Fernando,  Union,   P.   L 

1918  Drury.  Agnes,  San   Fernando,  Union,  P.   L 

1901  Kurtz,  Rev.  S.  B.,  607  Tennessee  St.,  Manila.  P.  I. 

1906  Kurtz,  Mrs.  S.  B.,  607  Tennessee  St..  Manila.  P.  L 

1910  Weber,  Matilda  C.,  San   Fernando,  Union,  P.  L 

1916  Witmer,  Rev.  C,  San  Fernando,  Union,  P.  I. 

1914  Witmer.  Mrs.  C,  San  Fernando,  Union.  P.  L 


MAR  31  195b 


Seeing  Our  Missions 
Across  the  Seas 


CONTENTS 

A  Word  in  Advance   2 

Porto   Rico    3 

West  Africa    11 

The   Philippines    27 

Japan    41 

China    50 

Exhibit  of  Progress  and  New  Recruits   60 

Week  of  Prayer  and  Self-Denial  61 


The  Foreign  Missionary  Society, 
United  Brethren  in  Christ, 
404  Otterbein  Press  Building, 
Dayton,  Ohio, 


A   WORD  IN   ADVANCE 

In  this  booklet  we  are  taken  on  a  swift  journey  to  each 
of  our  five  foreign  mission  fields.  We  shall  visit  our  mis- 
sionaries and  get  a  glimpse  of  the  work  at  the  leading 
stations. 

"Seeing  Our  Missions  Across  the  Seas"  is  the  first  of 
a  series  of  four  booklets  to  be  issued  during  the  cjuadren- 
nium.  It  is  our  aim  to  make  these  annual  booklets  rich  in 
facts  and  illustrations  for  the  use  of  pastors,  Sunday-school 
and  Christian  Endeavor  workers  ;  also  inspiring  and  help- 
ful to  every  member  of  the  United  Brethren  Church. 

The  booklets  to  be  issued  during  the  next  three  years, 
while  reporting  current  facts  concerning  the  work  in  gen- 
eral, will  give  particular  emphasis  to  "Christian  Schools 
in  Our  Mission  Fields,"  "Medical  and  Industrial  Work," 
and  "A  Christian  Literature  in  the  Vernacular." 

It  is  hoped  that  through  these  annual  messages  every 
family  in  our  Church  will  Ijecome  acquainted  with  our 
faithful  missionaries  at  the  front,  and  the  work  they  are 
seeking  to  do,  and  through  daily  prayer  release  God's  power 
upon  them. 

A.  copy  of  this  booklet  can  be  secured  for  ten  cents  ; 
twelve  copies  for  $1.00.  and  100  copies  for  $8.00,  postpaid, 
by  writing  to 

The  Foreign  Missionary  Society 
United   Brethren  in  Christ 
404  Otterbein  Press  Building- 
Dayton.  Ohio 
February   1,   1918. 


PORTO  RICO 

Population  of  Island,   1,250,000;   Mission  Opened,   1899: 

Number  of  Missionaries,  7 ;  Native  Workers,  17 ; 

Organized  Churches,  12. 

We  are  to  visit  our  missions  across  the  seas.  The  first 
will  be  Porto  Rico.  By  leaving  New  York  on  Saturday, 
February  16,  in  the  midst  of  winter,  we  will  probably  see 
on  the  following-  Wednesday  afternoon,  in  the  hazy  dis- 
tance ahead,  an  island  that  seems  to  be  rising  out  of  the 
sea.  It  is  the  top  of  a  giant  mountain,  whose  sloping  sides 
descend  abruptly  into  the  water  to  the  depth  of  five  miles. 
That  mountain  top  above  the  sea  is  the  Island  of  Porto 
Rico.  After  a  voyage  of  fifteen  hundred  miles  from  New 
York,  we  land  at  San  Juan,  the  capital  of  the  island,  in  the 
midst  of  tropical  heat,  vegetation,  and  scenery.  Porto 
Rico  is  100  miles  in  length,  thirty-six  miles  in  width,  and 
has  a  population  of  a  million  and  a  quarter.  Spain  ruled 
here  for  four  hundred  years  until  the  American  troops 
took  possession  of  the  island,  July  25,  1898. 

Great  Change  in  Seventeen  Years.  The  years  since 
have  been  characterized  by  rapid  progress  along  all  lines. 
Roads  have  been  built,  schools  opened  in  large  numbers, 
and  a  participation  in  the  government  has  been  granted  the 
people.  The  development  of  education  by  the  Government 
and  the  religious  work  of  the  Protestant  churches  are 
closing  the  great  gap  that  existed  between  the  poor  and 
the  rich,  the  educated  and  the  ignorant.  A  substantial 
middle  class  is  rising  which  in  the  very  near  future  will 
be  the  determining  factor  in  the  aft'airs  of  the  island. 

Dividing  the  Field.  When  Porto  Rico  was  freed  from 
the  unwarranted  restrictions  of  Spanish  rule,  the  Protestant 
churches  of  the  United  States  were  alert  to  their  opportun- 

3 


ity,  and  missionaries  were  sent  to  inaugurate  the  work  of 
evangelization.  The  field  was  small,  but  the  needs  were 
great,  and  in  view  of  these  conditions  it  became  evident 
that  a  policy  unlike  that  followed  in  the  United  States 
should  be  mapped  out  here.  Hence,  a  common  under- 
standing was  reached  regarding  the  division  of  territory 
which  prevents  overlapping  and  at  the  same  time  makes 
some  church  responsible  for  the  evangelization  of  every 
part  of  the  island. 

A  Visit  to  Ponce.  Ponce,  a  city  of  forty  thousand,  second 
in  size  to  San  Juan,  and  the  largest  city  on  the  south  side 
of  the  island,  is  the  center  of  United  Brethren  territory  and 
headquarters  of  our  mission.  To  reach  Ponce  we  travel 
by  stage  from  San  Juan  for  ninety  miles  over  the  famous 
military  road  across  precipitous  mountains.  Rev.  Philo 
W.  Drury  and  family  and  Miss  Elizabeth  Reed  have  their 
home  at  Ponce. 

In  addition  to  superintending  our  work.  Rev.  Mr.  Drury 
is  secretary  of  the  Evangelical  Union  of  Porto  Rico,  and 
chairman  of  the  interdenominational  committee  on  Christian 
literature.  Here  at  Ponce  about  seventeen  years  ago  Mr. 
Drury  began  issuing,  from  a  small  hand  press,  Christian 
tracts  in  the  language  of  the  people.  Later,  he  edited  a 
religious  periodical  for  our  mission,  which  grew  in  such 
favor  with  other  communions  that  seven  of  the  leading 
evangelical  denominations  have  now  entered  into  co-opera- 
tion in  the  publication  of  the  splendid  religious  weekly, 
"The  Puerto  Rico  Evangelico."  The  printing  plant  at 
Ponce  has  been  made  the  depository  of  the  American  Bible 
Society  and  the  best  evangelical  literature  in  the  Spanish 
language.  This  printing  press  had  much  to  do  in  winning 
the  recent  prohibition  victory  for  Porto  Rico. 

Our  church  in  Ponce,  which  has  a  membership  of  three 
hundred,  is  regarded  as  a  model.     Its  Sundav  school   has 


an  average  attendance  of  two  hundred.  A  splendid  class 
of  young-  people  will  soon  complete  the  International  Bible 
Teachers'  Training-  Course.  The  pastor  of  this  church  is 
one  of  our  first  converts  and  was  the  first  ordained 
evangelical  minister  on  the  island. 

The  mission  early  decided  on  the  following  policy: 
To  open  Cliristiaii  zvork  in  the  center  of  each  of  the  five 
districts  allotted  to  us,  and  to  make  these  central  churches 
strong,  and  then,  from  these  project  the  7cork  to  adjacent 
tozvns  and  rural  places. 

From  Ponce  as  our  chief  center  three  Sunday  schools 
and  prcacliing  ])laces  ha\e  been  opened  in  nearby  towns. 

Progress  in  District  of  Juana  Diaz.  Leaving  Ponce  we 
tra\el  o\er  the  military  road  to  the  northeast  about  eight 
miles  to  reach  Juana  Diaz,  the  center  of  a  district  of  3?,- 
000  people.  This  is  the  home  of  Rev.  and  Mrs.  I.  E. 
Caldwell.  Our  Juana  Diaz  church  has  a  membership  ol 
three  hundred,  a  large  Sunday  school,  and  a  splendid  young 
people's  society.  This  has  been  a  strong  evangelistic 
center.  From  here  mission  work  was  opened  at  Coto 
Laurel,  Villalba,  and  Guayabal.  Coto  Laurel  has  furnished 
a  number  of  native  workers  and  has  fostered  mission  work 
in  two  other  places. 

A^illalba  is  an  important  center  in  a  vast  coffee  region. 
A  large  sugar  mill  is  being  built,  also  a  coffee  drying  plant, 
which  will  mean  the  employment  of  many  more  people. 
This  town  is  becoming  an  attractive  commercial  center. 
A  permanent  chapel  has  just  been  erected,  the  gift  of  a 
farmer  near  Dayton,  Ohio. 

A  Trip  to  Tallaboa  and  Guayanilla.  Returning  to 
Ponce,  we  take  the  train,  and  about  ten  miles  west  of  the 
city  we  come  to  Tallaboa.  The  native  church  of  Tallaboa 
was  aided  in  the  erection  of  its  church  house  by  our 
Christian   Endeavor  societies  in  the  United   States.     Some 


of  the  mission's  most  faithful  workers  have  come  from  this 
church.  Three  other  preaching  places  are  maintained  from 
this  point. 

Continuing  our  journey  westward  five  miles  we  reach 
Ciuayanilla.  This  district  has  a  population  of  10,000.  Our 
church  here  is  large  and  aggressive.  Its  pastor  is  a  gradu- 
ate of  the  Theological  Seminary.  Three  other  places  are 
being  evangelized  from  this  center. 

The  Gospel  Winning  in  Yauco.  Ten  miles  west  of 
Gaa}anilla  we  reach  Yauco,  the  center  of  a  municipal  dis- 
trict of  35,000.  The  town  of  Yauco  has  a  population  of 
8,000.  This  is  the  home  of  Rev.  and  Mrs.  C.  I.  Mohler. 
}{ere  the  gospel  has  had  a  hearty  reception,  and  we  ^.wt  a 
strong  native  church  and  Sunday  school.  Other  towns 
adjacent  have  been  reached  with  the  good  news.  Dr.  J.  F. 
Morris  and  wife,  Christian  physicians  in  the  employment 
of  a  sugar  factory  a  few  miles  away,  give  their  services 
free  in  a  dispensary  here.  It  is  always  opened  with  a 
religiou:-  service  and  followed  by  personal  work.  Additions 
to  our  church  have  come  as  a  direct  result  of  this  dis- 
pensary work.  The  outstanding,  insistent  need  in  Yauco 
is  a  new  church  buildii^::. 

Rev.  Mr.  Mohler,  our  iiiissioiiary,  7crifes:  "Yauco  for 
many  years  has  been  pleading  for  a  church  building.  A  con- 
gregation of  a  Iiundred  members  lias  been  gathered.  They 
pay  their  current  e.vpenscs  and  $8  a  month  on  pastor's  salary, 
zvJiicli  is  a  large  amount  considering  their  poverty.  The  best 
classes  of  people  are  ready  to  co-operate  with  us.  Recently 
a  banker,  and  a  prominent  mercJiant  said  to  me,  'Why  don't 
you  build?  JVe  ore  ready  to  help  and  the  tozvn  is  ivith  you:' 
.4  missionary  family  is  on  the  ground  with  nine  years'  e.vperi- 
ence,  and  the  time  will  soon  come  when  Yauco  should  be  left 
entirely  to  native  workers,  so  surelv  now  is  the  time  to  build." 


Prayer  +  Bible  Study  -)-  Personal  Work  =  A  Revival. 
Twelve  miles  northwest  from  Ponce  is  the  town  Penuelas, 
in  the  center  of  a  district  of  13,000.  Our  church  at  Penuelas 
has  just  had  a  refreshing  revival.  For  months  the  native 
pastor,  who  is  strong  in  prayer,  had  been  pleading  for  an 
awakening.  When  the  time  seemed  to  be  ripening  he 
arranged  for  daily  meetings  for  prayer,  also  street  meet- 
ings to  prepare  the  people.  Bibles,  Testaments,  and  tracts 
were  sold  and  distributed  free.  When  the  meetings  opened 
the  people  were  possessed  with  an  unusual  prayer  spirit. 
From  the  third  night  on  there  were  conversions  every  night 
and  during  the  four  remaining  days  there  were  thirty 
decisions  for  Christ.  The  revival  fire  continues  to  burn. 
Many  barrios  (country  districts)  are  reached  with  the 
gospel  from  Penuelas. 

Illiteracy  and  Immorality.  Tavo  facts  will  slunv  the 
great  need  of  mission  work  in  Porto  Rico  : 

When  the  Americans  took  possession  of  the  island, 
eighty-five  out  of  every  one  Jiundred  above  the  age  of  five 
could  neither  read  nor  write. 

For  the  700,000  persons  who  lived  in  rural  districts  there 
were  only  fourteen  so-called  schools  with  an  enrollment 
of  possibly  two  hundred  and  fifty  pupils. 

The  second  startling  fact  is  this :  The  first  census  talcen 
showed  that  one-fliird  of  the  people  Irving  as  husband  and 
wife  acknoivledged  that  they  were  not  married.  The 
priests  had  put  an  insuperable  barrier  in  the  way  of  legal 
matrimony  by  charging  excessive  fees. 

During  the  past  seventeen  years  a  wonderful  change  has 
taken  place  in  education.  There  are  now  240,000  bright 
boys  and  girls  in  the  public  schools  of  Porto  Rico.  And 
through  the  Christian  churches  and  Sunday  schools  a  new 
conviction  concerning  marriage  and  all  moral  questions 
is  taking  hold  of  the  people. 

8 


Intensive  and  Co-operative  Work.  It  has  not  been  pos- 
sible in  this  brief  survey  to  touch  all  the  centers  of  work. 
A  worthy  achievement  of  our  native  Christians  in  Porto 
Rico  is  this:  Through  their  ozvii  contributions  they  have 
erected  nine  chapels  and  a  parsonage  for  congregations 
beyond  their  ozvn  communities. 

The  Christian  workers  of  all  denominations  in  Porto 
Rico  furnish  a  good  illustration  of  what  can  be  done  by 
co-operation  in  evangelism,  in  the  training  of  a  native 
ministry,  and   in  the  production  of  a   Christian   literature. 

The  ability  of  the  Christian  forces  of  the  island  to  work 
together  was  one  of  the  strong  factors  in  the  recent  sweep- 
ing victory  for  prohibition. 

A  Gateway  to  Other  Fields.  Porto  Rico  is  receiving 
large  attention  as  a  mission  field  because  of  its  strategic 
relation  to  all  Latin-American  countries.  Situated  as  it 
is  between  North  and  South  America  it  serves  as  a  link 
between  Anglo-Saxon  and  Latin  civilization  and  stands 
in  a  position  where  it  will  be  able  to  interpret  the  one  to 
the  other  and  promote  such  intercourse  as  will  be  mutually 
helpful. 

The  Agricultural  School,  located  at  Mayaguez,  has 
already  been  called  upon  to  furnish  young  men  for  the 
development  of  the  agricultural  possibilities  of  South 
America.  Since  the  prohibition  victory,  calls  have  come  to 
Porto  Rico  from  South  and  Central  America  for  help  to 
inaugurate  similar  campaigns  there.  It  is  the  hope  of 
Christian  leaders  that  this  island  will  soon  be  used  of 
God  in  projecting  the  gospel  to  its  near  neighbor,  Santo 
Domingo. 


hich  shall  win  Africa, 
Christianity  or 


A   Mohammedan  Leader. 


Moh 


ammedanism 


^ 


THE  NEXT  TWENTY-FIVE 
YEARS  MAY  DECIDE 


Every  third  person  in 

Africa  is 

a  Mohammedan 


MOHAMMEDANISM  RULES 

NEARLY    ALL    OF    AFRICA 

NORTH  OF  THE  EQUATOR 

UNITED  BRETHREN 

MISSIONS 

ARE  ON  THE  FRONT  LINE 

OF  ITS  ADVANCE 


Will  you  help  stem  the  tide? 


A   United  BreHiren  Pastor  and  Family,  Son  of  a  MoIia?nmPdan  f'liief. 


WEST  AFRICA 

Population  of  Africa,  160,000,000;  Mission  Begun,  1855; 

Missionaries,  25  ;  Native  Workers,  80 ; 

Organized  Churches,  27. 

We  now  visit  our  oldest  mission,  that  of  Sierra  I.eone, 
West  Africa.  To  start  this  mission  our  pioneer  missionar- 
ies crossed  the  Atlantic  sixty-three  years  ago  in  a 
sail  vessel  which  required  thirty-four  days.  It  is  now 
more  difficult  to  reach  Africa  than  then,  because  of  war 
conditions.  It  is  necessary  first  to  get  a  permit  from  the 
British  Embassy  which  requires  three  or  four  months,  then 
a  passport,  and  to  avoid  the  submarine  zone  the  journey 
must  be  made  by  relays  across  the  Atlantic. 

The  size  of  Africa  is  a  surprise  to  many.  There  is 
room  on  the  Dark  Continent  for  the  whole  of  the  United 
States,  Europe,  China,  and  India. 

Activities  in  Freetown.  Our  mission  is  located  in  Sierra 
Leone,  a  British  possession  on  the  West  coast  about  eight 
degrees  north  of  the  equator,  where  the  weather  is  always 
hot. 

Freetown  is  the  harbor  city  and  the  capital  of  Sierra 
Leone  with  a  population  of  45,000.  There  are  at  least  forty 
distinct  tribes  found  in  the  city  and  the  diversity  of 
languages  and  dialects  spoken  makes  it  a  difficult  mission 
field.  The  headquarters  of  our  mission  and  the  homes  of 
Superintendent  and  Mrs.  E.  M.  Hursh,  Professor  and  Mrs. 
D.  E.  Weidler,  and  Rev.  and  Mrs.  D.  M.  Evans  are  in  this 
city. 

Albert  Academy,  in  charge  of  Professor  D.  E.  Weidler, 
is  also  located  here.  The  curriculum  of  this  school  equals 
that  of  a  good  high-school  course.  Emphasis  is  laid  on 
religious  training.  The  industrial  and  manual  training  de- 
ll 


partment  of  the  Academy,  under  the  direction  of  Rev.  D.  M. 
Evans,  aims  to  teach  the  students  the  dignity  of  labor. 
Agriculture  is  taught,  also  wood  work  and  furniture  making, 
which  are  creating  great  interest.  There  is  also  a  printing 
department  in  which  our  monthly  religious  paper,  "The 
Sierra  Leone  Outlook"  is  printed,  which  is  the  only  Christian 
paper  published  in  Sierra  Leone.  Hymn  books,  catechisms, 
and  thousands  of  pages  of  religious  reading  matter  are 
being  disseminated.  Professor  A.  T.  Sumner,  one  of  the 
teocliers  in  the  Albert  Academy,  zvlio  is  a  product  of  our 
ozvn  schools,  is  the  autJwr  of  a  new  book  in  the  Mcndi 
language  zvhich  has  recently  been  published  by  the  English 
Government.  This  book  is  the  first  of  its  kind  ever  pro- 
duced by  a  native  of  Sierra  Leone.  The  science  department 
of  the  Academy,  which  is  urgently  in  need  of  a  specialist, 
is  doing  much  to  destroy  the  old  animistic  ideas  of  the 
native  men.  The  ordinary  phenomena  of  nature  are  being 
explained  by  natural  science.  A  spring  is  no  longer  to  them 
the  abode  of  demons  who  cause  the  water  to  bubble  forth, 
but  simply  water  seeking  its  own  level.  Storms,  thunder, 
and  lightning  are  not  the  fighting  and  spitting  of  demons 
in  the  air,  but  the  natural  operations  of  atmospheric  cur- 
rents and  electricity. 

An  Itinerants'  League  among  the  students  carries  the 
gospel  in  many  different  tongues  to  various  sections  of  the 
city  every  week. 

There  is  a  fine  congregation  of  United  Brethren  people 
in  Freetown.  They  have  a  simple  but  very  comfortable 
church   building  and   are   entirely   self-supporting. 

Seeing  Rotifunk.  Starting  from  FreetOAvn  back  into  the 
country  we  will  travel  by  the  Sierra  Leone  Government  rail- 
way. It  is  a  narrow  gauge  and  carries  mixed  trains  that  cover 
about  ten  miles  an  hour  when  they  make  good  time.  Half 
a  day's  travel  by  this  train  brings  us  to  Rotifunk,  fifty-five 

13 


miles  east  of  Freetown.  This  is  one  of  our  oldest  stations. 
It  is  in  charge  of  Rev.  and  Mrs.  J.  F.  Musselman.  A  pros- 
perous school  is  in  progress  \Yhere  150  children  arc  Ijcing 
trained  by  Christian  teachers.  Near  at  hand  is  the  boys' 
home  for  boarding  students  and  not  far  away  stands  the 
dispensary  built  in  memory  of  our  martyred  Doctors  Hat- 
field and  Archer.  This  is  where  the  tribes  come  to  be  healed 
of  their  physical  suffering  and  find  heart  healing  as  well. 
People  sometimes  walk  200  miles  to  obtain  aid.  On  dis- 
pensary mornings  scores  of  people  may  be  seen  waiting  at 
day-dawn  for  treatment.  JVJiat  a  pitiful  crozvd  they  arc! 
Some  until  acliinq  teeth  to  be  fulled,  others  zcith  sore  eyes, 
ulcerous  sores  zvhicli  are  slowly  cousuming  the  face  or  head 
or  parts  of  the  limbs,  smallpox,  and  leprosy!  Dr.  Zenora 
Griggs  and  Miss  Nora  Vesper  begin  the  day  early,  for  that 
is  the  only  way  they  can  hope  to  get  through.  First  of 
all  comes  the  message  from  the  Book  of  God  and  prayer  is 
made  for  his  blessing  upon  the  day;  then  dispensing  begins. 
It  is  usually  late  in  the  day  before  they  are  all  treated. 
Sometimes  as  many  as  eight  thousand  sufferers  are  treated 
in  a  year  at  this  station. 

Situated  just  at  the  side  of  the  path  leading  from  the 
dispensary  to  the  Mission  House  stands  the  Martyrs' 
Memorial  Church.  Nearly  the  entire  cost  of  the  building 
was  contributed  by  native  Christians  in  memory  of  those 
who  loved  them  unto  death.  Meetings  are  held  in  the 
church  almost  every  day  of  the  week.  The  church  is  wholly 
self-supporting  and  gives  each  year  $100  for  the  extension 
of  mission  work. 

In  the  town  of  Rotifunk  there  are  perhaps  ten  different 
languages  spoken.  Services  are  held  in  various  parts  of 
the  town,  either  in  the  open  air  or  under  the  shelter  of  the 
native  harries.  Mrs.  Delia  Todd  gives  her  entire  time  to 
itinerating    and    evangelistic    work    in    towns    surrounding 

14 


Rotifunk.  Rev.  E.  Kingman  is  evangelist-at-largc  for  our 
entire  territory. 

From  a  Slave  Pen  to  a  Training  School.  Shenge  in  the 
.Sherbro  Country,  our  oldest  mission  station,  may  be  reached 
by  boat  from  Rotifunk,  fifty-ti\e  miles  down  the  Bompeh 
River  and  across  the  bay.  If  the  wind,  tide,  and  boatmen 
!)ehave  well,  the  trip  may  be  made  in  twelve  hours.  If  not, 
then  we  must  possess  our  souls  in  patience  and  believe  we 
shall  reach  there  sometime  if  nothing  more  serious  turns  up. 

Shenge  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  most  beautiful  spots  in 
Sierra  Leone.  The  mission  buildings  are  located  on  a 
peninsula  commanding  a  view  far  out  to  sea.  Just  off  the 
coast  lies  Plantain  Island  with  its  ruins  of  John  Newton's 
famous  slave  pen,  hinting  of  many  blood-curdling  tragedies 
whicli  were  there  enacted  in  the  old  slave  days.  Stones 
taken  from  these  very  ruins  now  form  the  walls  of  the 
Rufus  Clark  and  Wife  Training  School.  Graduates  from 
this  school  have  gone  out  to  become  efficient  teachers  and 
preachers  and  to  fill  the  places  of  trust  and  responsibility. 
A  farm  of  sixty  acres  gives  plenty  of  opportunity  for  in- 
dustrial training  among  the  boys.  They  are  also  trained 
in  practical  Christian  work  in  the  Shenge  church  and  by 
doing  itinerating  work  in  the  adjacent  towns.  Rev.  and 
Mrs.  Emery  are  in  charge  of  this  station  and  surrounding 
territory. 

Industrial  Work.  An  easy  trip  up  the  Cockboro  River 
from  Shenge  will  bring  us  to  Mofus,  our  industrial  station, 
where  Mr.  H.  H.  Thomas  is  the  lone  missionary.  Here  we 
find  a  large  farm  planted  with  kola  and  rubber  trees  which, 
when  the  war  is  over,  and  commerce  is  resumed,  will  find  a 
good  market.  This  farm  is  intended  as  an  object  lesson  to 
the  people  to  show  them  what  can  be  done  to  train  men 
industrially. 

A  Glimpse  of  Bonthe.     If  we  wish  to  visit  Bonthe  our 

15 


best  way  to  do  it  is  to  return  to  Shenge  and  go  south  sixty 
miles  by  boat.  Here  we  find  our  largest  church  and  con- 
gregation ;  also  a  large  and  prosperous  school.  The  church 
building  was  erected  by  Rev.  R.  Cookson  Taylor,  a  former 
pastor,  who  spent  almost  eight  years  in  gathering  funds 
and  materials  for  the  church,  nine-tenths  of  which  were 
contributed  by  native  Christians  and  their  friends.  This 
church  has  for  some  time  been  self-supporting  and  is  doing 
much  in  giving  the  gospel  to  others.  A  building  is  now 
being  erected  on  the  mission  grounds  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  boys  coming  from  the  river  districts  who  would 
otherwise  have  no  opportunity  to  secure  an  education. 

Again  we  take  a  boat  and  journey  up  a  river  as  far  as 
Sembehu.  AVe  have  time  merely  to  greet  the  native  pastor 
and  his  faithful  wife  in  charge  of  this  station.  He  is  the  son 
of  one  of  our  early  native  pastors  who  died  a  few  years  ago. 
This  pastor,  as  many  others,  teaches  the  mission  school 
every  day  of  the  week  and  preaches  and  itinerates  on 
Sunday. 

A  Supply  Station  for  Christian  Homes.  From  Sembehu 
we  take  a  day's  tramp  overland  to  Moyamba  located  on  the 
railroad,  seventy-five  miles  east  of  Freetown.  Moyamba  is 
the  government  headquarters  for  the  Ronietta  district.  As 
we  near  the  mission  house,  fifty  neatly  clad  girls  of  various 
ages  rush  out  to  meet  us,  for  here  is  where  our  splendid 
Girls'  Boarding  School  is  located,  and  here  one  learns  the 
secret  of  the  well-kept  native  Christian  homes  we  have 
entered  at  every  stage  of  our  journey.  The  wives  of  most  of 
our  native  workers  have  been  trained  in  our  girls'  schools. 
Miss  Odle  and  Miss  Hoerner  are  the  present  missionaries 
in  charge  of  this  station  and  school.  They  teach  these  girls 
sewing,  raffia  work,  laundry  work,  cooking,  and  general 
house  work.  In  the  school  house  nearby,  these  girls,  with 
a  crowd  of  other  girls  and  boys  from  the  town,  put  in  many 

16 


hours  each  day  "learning  book."  Fifty  girls  seem  to  us 
a  large  family  at  first,  but  soon  we  begin  to  feel  that  they 
are  fewer  than  they  ought  to  be  as  Miss  Odle  tells  of  the 
many  she  has  been  obliged  to  turn  away  during  the  past 
year  for  lack  of  room.  The  dormitories  are  overcroivded 
and  the  girls  have  to  go  to  bed  and  get  up  by  relays  for 
there  is  not  room  for  them  all  to  dress  and  undress  at  the 
same  time.  And  what  about  those  girls  who  were  turned 
away?  What  will  become  of  them?  With  tears  in  her  eyes 
Miss  Odle  will  tell  yon  how  they  just  go  back  to  their 
heathen  homes  to  be  sold  as  wives  to  the  most  likely  man 
who  seeks  them.  There  is  no  other  chance  for  them.  A 
dark  curtain  has  fallen  over  their  ivhole  future.  As  you 
listen  you  begin  to  wonder  why  some  one  with  means  to  do 
so,  does  not  send  funds  to  enlarge  the  dormitories  that 
fifty  more  girls  might  be  admitted.  The  girls  in  the  school 
are  active  workers  in  the  church  and  assist  in  itinerating 
work  in  nearb}^  towns. 

Mohammedans  Become  Christians.  Near  Moyamba  are 
many  towns  where  Christian  work  is  being  done,  two  of 
which  are  Kwellu  and  Yonnie  Banna.  At  the  latter  place 
Thomas  Hallowell  superintends  the  flock.  He  is  a  re- 
markable man ;  converted  from  Mohammedanism  after  he 
was  grown  to  manhood  he  secured  his  education  by  study- 
ing nights.  His  life  is  full  of  the  power  of  God  and  many 
souls  have  through  his  ministry  been  led  to  the  light.  In 
this  humble  little  mud  church  at  Yonni  Banna,  meetings  are 
often  held  nearly  all  night  long. 

Letters  from  Africa  bring  news  of  recent  victories  at 
Kwellu  where  Mrs.  Thompson,  a  Christian  native  woman, 
daughter  of  the  famous  Bishop  Crowther,  began  work 
fifteen  years  ago.  Under  her  ministry  the  old  chief  Kon- 
gomo  was  converted.  He  died  a  little  later  and  in  less  than 
a  year  Mrs.  Thompson  also  died,  but  the  work  still  lives. 

17 


Chief  Kongomo  had  several  sons  and  before  his  death  he 
endeavored  to  influence  them  to  become  Christians.  One 
of  them,  John  Bull  by  name,  was  taken  away  from  his 
Mohammedan  teacher  and  placed  in  the  mission  school 
where  he  soon  found  Christ  whom  he  served  till  the  day  of 
his  death  in  spite  of  severe  persecution  from  Mohammedans. 
He  testified  that  he  neier  found  any  light  in  following  the 
Mohammedan  zvay,  but  that  in  the  Christian  faith  he  had 
found  and  tasted  a  szi'eetness  he  had  never  before  ktiozcn. 
It  is  believed  that  his  recent  death  was  due  to  the  intrigue 
of  Mohammedans,  but  before  his  death  he  won  three  of 
his  brothers  and  they  are  soon  to  be  received  into  the 
church.  Just  as  he  was  passing  aw^ay  he  urged  the  native 
pastor  to  guard  his  brothers  and  keep  them  close  to  the 
church. 

The  Blood  of  Martyrs  the  Seed  of  the  Church.  Leaving 
Moyamba  we  take  the  train  and  travel  about  thirty  miles 
farther  to  Mano,  where  we  visit  our  native  pastor,  the 
church,  and  school,  and  then  prepare  for  a  fifteen  mile 
march  overland  to  Taiama.  All  the  belongings  will  be 
packed  into  sixty-pound  loads  and  carried  on  the  heads  of 
native  men.  Reaching  Taiama  we  find  ourselves  in  the 
largest  town  in  the  Mendi  Country — a  strategic  center  for 
missionary  activity.  Here  we  meet  Miss  Minnie  Eaton 
and  Miss  Angie  Akin  and  Miss  Emma  Ney.  These  workers, 
as  those  in  our  other  stations,  maintain  evangelistic,  educa- 
tional, medical,  and  industrial  work.  The  school,  though 
but  about  twelve  years  old,  has  already  sent  out  three 
teachers  for  mission  schools,  and  two  graduates  from 
Albert  Academy,  while  four  others  are  now  studying  at  the 
Academy,  and  several  more  expecting  to  enter  soon.  A 
large  percentage  of  boys  have  become  members  of  the 
church. 

There  are  more  ilian  ninety  towns  in  the  Taiama  eliief- 

18 


fancy,  and  beyond  these  many  more  that  have  no  gospel 
light  except  that  zvhieh  is  brought  to  them  by  the  mission- 
aries at  this  station.  The  stones  used  in  the  foundation 
of  the  Taiama  church  were  taken  from  the  big  sacrificial 
rock  in  the  Taia  River,  where  our  missionaries,  Rev.  and 
Mrs.  L.  A.  McGrew,  were  massacred  during  the  uprising  of 
1898.  The  people  feared  to  kill  these  missionaries  in  the 
town  lest  some  terrible  disaster  follow,  so  they  took  them 
to  this  rock,  slew  them  there,  and  threw  their  bodies  into 
the  river. 

"They  met  the  tyrant's  brandished  steel, 
The  lion's  gory  mane. 
They  bowed  their  necks  the  stroke  to  feel ; 
Who  follows  in  their  train?" 

Upon,  this  rock  and  tlic  blood  of  martyrs  God  is  build- 
ing a  church  against  ivhich  the  poivers  of  heathenism  can- 
not prez'ail.  Taiama  mission  farm  consists  of  over  a  hun- 
dred acres  of  good  land  and  several  thousand  copal  gum 
trees  have  been  planted  which  will  in  a  few  years  yield  a 
good  income  for  the  mission.  Other  products  are  raised 
by  the  boys  in  the  school. 

A  Surgical  Operation  with  a  Razor  Blade.  The  medical 
department  at  Taiama  has  had  a  great  growth  in  recent 
months  under  the  direction  of  Miss  Emma  Ney.  People 
come  with  all  sorts  of  ills.  Miss  Ney  writes  of  an  operation 
she  recently  performed  with  the  blade  of  a  Gillette  safety 
razor.  It  was  a  case  that  had  been  neglected  till  it  was 
almost  too  late  and  she  went  to  it  amid  the  wails  of  a  great 
crowd  who  had  about  given  the  patient  up  to  die.    She  says  : 

"When  I  arrived  at  the  place,  I  singled  out  tlie  big  man 
at  once,  and  told  him  to  get  the  town  out  of  his  house,  and  in 
a  little  tvhilc  all  ivas  quiet.  If  ei  er  I  zvished  I  zi'as  a  full- 
fledged  M.  D.  it  zcas  then.  I  went  to  tvork  with  one  man  hold- 
ing  the  lantern   and  a  roll  of  cotton,   and   one   of  my   boys 

19 


The  Salvation  of  the 

World 


The    rock 

npiiii   which  the 

McGrevvs    were 

beheaded. 


IT  COST  GOD  HIS 

ONLY  SON 

IT  COST  CHRIST 

CALVARY 

IT  COST 

THE  MARTYRS 

THEIR  LIVES 

IT  COSTS 

THE  MISSIONARY 

HIS  HOME 
HIS  LIFE,  HIS  ALL 


What  is  it  costing  you? 


stationed  at  tJic  door  to  keep  out  the  people  and  the  fozvls. 
The  native  pastor  was  sitting  at  the  head  of  the  sick  man  telling 
him  I  knezv  zvJiat  I  zvas  about,  that  it  zvas  his  only  ehanee. 
We  zvorked  for  three  solid  hours  and  because  of  my  generous 
application  of  hot  zvatcr,  I  zvas  standing  in  a  small  mud  puddle. 

"If  a  picture  of  that  operation  could  have  been  taken  yon 
zi'ould  have  fifty  medical  men  ready  to  come  out  here  at  once. 
After  dressing  and  bandaging  zve  transferred  the  patient  to 
a  dry  mat  before  the  tire  zvhich  zvas  burning  in  the  middle  of 
the  hut,  and  zve  then  received  the  thanks  of  his  zvives  in  turn, 
from  the  oldest  to  the  youngest.  A  zveek  later  tire  patient  zvas 
able  to  be  up  and  soon  zvent  to  zvork.  My  'fee'  for  the 
operation  zvas  a  chicken." 

Kono,  the  Land  of  the  Waiting  People.  To  journey  to 
the  Kono  Country  from  Taiama,  it  is  necessary  to  return 
to  Mano  and  from  there  we  will  go  to  Bo  on  the  Sierra 
Leone  railroad,  and  stay  over  night;  then  the  next  day 
continue  our  trip  until  we  reach  Hangha,  200  miles  from 
Freetown.  We  are  on  our  way  to  Jaiama,  sixty  miles  north 
of  Hangha  in  the  Kono  Country. 

Again  our  belongings  are  packed  on  the  heads  of  men 
and  we  travel  for  five  hours  over  a  good  road,  then  by  nar- 
row winding  bush  paths,  up  and  down  steep  hills,  till  on 
the  third  day  we  come  upon  a  "Garden  in  the  Wilderness" 
away  up  among  the  Kono  Hills.  It  is  the  United  Brethren 
mission  station  and  grounds.  Fruit  trees,  vegetables,  and 
flowers  are  planted  all  over  the  place.  Mr.  W.  N.  Wimmer 
is  holding  the  fort  alone.  The  mission  house,  boys'  dormi- 
tory, and  school  house  are  all  built  of  mud.  Inside 
the  school  house  are  rudely  built  benches  and  mud 
seats,  but  the  pupils  have  bright  faces  and  look  as  if  they 
v/ere  doing  something  worth  while  in  spite  of  such  limited 
equipment.  When  the  regular  school  hours  are  over  the 
boys   are   taught   tailoring,   basket   making,   hammock   and 

21 


mat  weaving,  agriculture,  cooking,  the  laying  out  of  roads, 
and  building  of  bridges.  lUit  to  appreciate  what  Christian- 
ity means  to  the  Kono  Country  we  must  accompany  the 
boys  to  the  gospel  services  and  listen  to  them  as  they  sing 
Christian  hymns.  The  words  are  strange,  hut  the  tunes 
are  old  familiar  ones,  and  they  are  singijuj  in  the  rich,  major 
key — a  thing  unknoivn  in  a  heathen  country  zvhere  songs  are 
all  in  minor  keys  till  they  begin  to  sing  the  glad  songs 
of  salvation. 

Until  our  missionaries,  Rev.  and  Mrs.  J.  Hal  Smith 
answered  the  call  of  this  tribe,  they  had  no  written  language 
and,  of  course,  no  literature.  But  through  the  untiring  work 
of  Mrs.  Smith,  they  now  have  many  Christian  songs  and 
the  entire  four  Gospels  which  are  now  being  published  by 
the  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  of  London. 

A  great  change  is  already  seen  in  the  faces  of  the  people 
and  in  their  homes  because  of  the  work  of  the  few  years 
since  this  mission  was  opened.  In  a  secluded  spot  is  the 
lonely  grave  of  Rev.  J.  Hal  Smith,  first  missionary  to  the 
Konos.  From  the  mission  house  to  the  grave  you  will 
follow  a  path  cut  and  cleared  by  the  hands  of  loyal  native 
Christians,  and  lilies  line  the  path  on  both  sides.  What  a 
challenge  this  lone  grave  should  be  to  the  Church  to  send  re- 
inforcements, that  this  zvhole  country  of  the  Konos,  the  waiting 
people,  may  be  taken  for  Christ! 

Preferring  Christ  to  Riches.  Bidding  Mr.  Wimmer 
good-by  and  leaving  him  alone  once  more,  we  take  a  long 
journey  on  foot  to  the  eastward  to  Pendembu,  or  else  return 
to  Hangha  and  go  up  on  the  train  twenty  miles  to  this  town 
at  the  end  of  the  railway  line.  This  outpost  of  the  mission 
is  almost  on  the  boundarv  separating  Sierre  Leone  from 
Liberia,  and  has  been  maintained  by  native  workers.  A 
wicked  chief,  probably  influenced  by  Mohammedans,  has 
persecuted    the    Christians    and    tried    to    keep   them    from 

22 


attending-  church,  but  they  are  standing  the  test  well  and 
are  willing  to  suffer  reproach  for  the  name  of  Christ.  One 
of  the  chief's  own  sons  refused  to  be  weaned  away  from  the 
faith  by  the  flattering  inducements  of  his  father  who  offered 
him  many  wives,  which  meant  wealth  and  preferment.  He 
is  an  outcast  from  his  family,  but  is  proving-  himself  a 
modern  Daniel. 

Native  Churches  Going  and  Growing.  We  have  now 
reached  our  most  interior  station  and  in  all  our  travels 
have  visited  but  a  few  of  our  organized  churches.  But  we 
have  a  glimpse  of  the  native  church  coming  to  self-support 
and  a  sense  of  personal  responsibility  in  sending  the  gospel 
to  others.  One-fourth  of  all  funds  contributed  by  these 
native  Christians  is  given  to  send  the  light  to  waiting 
tribes.  The  church  at  each  station  is  assuming  responsi- 
bility to  carry  the  gospel  regularly  to  all  the  towns  adjacent. 

At  the  close  of  each  quarter  all  the  workers  and  leading 
laymen  from  all  local  churches  gather  at  the  central  station 
of  their  district  for  a  three  days'  conference  in  Bible  study 
and  prayer,  for  reviewing  the  work  of  the  quarter,  and  to 
counsel  over  problems  and  to  plan  for  the  future.  Nine 
such  conferences  are  held  each  quarter  covering  the  entire 
territory.  These  are  proving  to  be  a  wonderful  uplift  and 
are  increasing  the  efficiency  of  all  the  native  workers  and 
Christians. 

On  Journeys  for  the  King.  God  is  giving  our  Church 
a  noble  band  of  native  workers  ■ — pastors  of  the  churches 
and  teachers  of  the  schools.  Many  times  during  the  week 
and  on  Sunday  these  conduct  Bible  classes,  Sunday  schools, 
and  preaching  services.  See  this  native  man  of  God  with 
Bible  under  his  arm,  treading  the  hard  paths  of  the  jungle. 
His  feet  are  black  and  perhaps  bare  and  calloused,  but 
beautiful    zvith    frequent    journeys    for    the    King.       As    he 

23 


How  Long  Shall  We  Keep  Them  Waiting? 


Five  Thousand  Towns  in  our  Territory  in  West  Africa 

Are  Without  the  Gospel.     What  Does  This  Mean 

To  Them— To  Him— To  You  ? 


travels  he  sings  perhaps  a  hymn  learned  from  his  little  red- 
covered  Sankey  hymn  book : 

"Sozvn  ill  the  darkness  or  sozvn  hi  the  light, 
Sozvn  in  our  zveakncss  or  sozvn  in  our  might. 
Gathered  i>i  time  or  eternity. 
Sure,  ah,  sure  zvill  the  harvest  be." 

Stopping  in  many  towns  during  the  day  he  gathers  the 
people  and  tells  them  of  a  wonderful  God  who  loves  them. 
After  nightfall  we  see  him  in  another  town — his  only  light 
being  that  of  the  open  tire  in  the  center  of  the  town.  He 
sings  a  song  and  dark  shadowy  figures  gather  around  the 
fire.  Then  he  opens  the  zvouderful  Book — a  black  hand 
turns  its  zvhite  pages,  and  lips  that  once  prayed  to  devils 
nozv  speak  the  Word  of  Life.  If  we  stand  close  enough 
we  may  see  branded  on  his  neck  the  marks  of  the  "Poros," 
that  society  so  full  of  dark  secrets,  but  that  neck  nozv  bears 
the  yoke  of  Christ.  As  he  speaks,  oh,  how  they  listen !  Per- 
haps it  is  the  first  time  they  have  ever  heard  of  that  loving 
Savior  who  can  free  them  from  the  awful  bondage  of 
demons.  Every  hand  is  raised  when  he  asks  how  many 
wish  to  follow  that  Christ,  but  he  knows  that  they  need 
much  personal  teaching  for  they  cannot  read  the  Bible. 
Some  one  must  come  back  to  them  again  and  again.  They 
plead  for  a  teacher  and  the  worker  promises  to  come  back 
again,  but  there  are  so  many  towns  where  the  people  are 
just  as  hungry  and  the  need  just  as  great! 

The  Challenge  of  5,000  Unevangelized  Towns !  ]'cs,  there 
are  5,000  tozvns  by  actual  investigation  for  zvhich  the  United 
Brethren  Church  is  responsible  in  Sierra  Leone.  This  is  the 
thing  that  is  breaking  our  missionaries  faster  than  the  zvork  they 
do.  They  must  live  day  after  day  in  the  midst  of  multitudes 
whom  they  cannot  reach — innocent  children  doomed  to  live 
all  their  lives  with  no  Christ,  no  school,  no  Christian  homes 

25 


— young  men  and  young  women,  the  haggard  appealing 
faces  of  old  people  soon  to  pass  away  without  a  ray  of  light ! 
The  tragedy  of  it  all,  how  it  grips  the  missionary's  heart! 

Mohammed  or  Christ — Which?  Added  to  this  appalling 
need  is  the  awful  menace  of  aggressive  Mohammedanism, 
which  is  now  sweeping  down  over  our  territory.  It  has 
already  overrun  the  northern  half  of  our  field  and  our  thin 
line  of  missionaries  and  little  native  churches  realize  that 
they  are  in  the  front  line  of  trenches  in  a  hand-to-hand 
conflict  with  the  greatest  peril  of  Africa.  When  ivill  our 
people  in  America  pray  prevailingly  for  their  hard  pressed 
missionary  substitutes  iu  Africa^  When  zvill  reinforce- 
ments be  sentf  Must  the  ground  icon  at  such  an  aivfnl 
cost  of  life  and  suffering  be  surrendered  because  the  Church 
at  home  fails  them  at  this  time  of  great  crisis? 

The  government  is  planning  to  open  vernacular  schools 
all  over  Sierra  Leone.  Teachers  must  be  supplied.  They 
zvill  eitlier  be  Mohauuncdan  or  Christian.  Shall  our  Chris- 
tian schools  in  Africa  be  reinforced  now  and  others  opened 
in  order  to  train  these  teachers ;  or  shall  we  allow  wide- 
awake Mohammedanism  to  supply  the  need  and  our  Lord's 
cause  go  down  in  defeat?  We  must  answer  and  we  must 
answer  NOW.  Let  our  answer  be  such  as  shall  not  cause 
regret   when    we   meet    Him    and    them    at    the   judgment. 


26 


THE  PHILIPPINES. 

Population,  9,000,000;   Mission   Permanently  Opened, 

1904 ;  Missionaries,  8 ;  Native  Workers,  23 ; 

Organized  Churches,  Z7 . 

To  see  the  mission  work  of  the  Philippines  we  must 
cross  our  country  to  the  Pacific  Coast  by  railroad,  and  from 
there  journey  by  steamship.  It  requires  about  five  weeks 
to  go  from  Dayton,  Ohio,  to  Manila,  the  capital  of  the 
Philippines. 

For  three  hundred  years  Spain  ruled  the  Philippine 
Islands  with  a  strong  hand.  There  was  no  liberty  of  con- 
science, no  open  Bible,  no  freedom  of  speech,  no  free  press, 
and  no  guarantee  of  personal  and  property  rights. 

Every  municipality  was  in  charge  of  a  Spanish  priest 
or  friar  who  was  the  real  government  no  matter  who  occu- 
pied the  civil  ofiicial's  chair.  Every  Spanish  official  who 
attempted  to  reform  conditions  in  opposition  to  the  clerical 
party  died  a  violent  death  or  was  sent  back  to  Spain  in  dis- 
grace. The  friars  having  a  monopoly  on  the  religious  and 
governmental  powers  grew  corrupt  and  became  famous 
for  dissensions,  dissipation,  gambling,  sensuality,  and  greed. 
These  conditions  obtained  everywhere  save  in  the  interior 
where  live  about  a  million  Pagans  and  Moros,  who  were 
never  subject  to  Spanish  sovereignty. 

The  American  Flag  Brings  a  New  Day.  In  1898 
came  Dewey  with  the  Stars  and  Stripes  and  the  victory 
of  Manila  Bay  and  a  new  and  glorious  day  broke  upon  the 
Filipino  people.  Schools  were  opened,  liberty  of  conscience, 
freedom  of  press  and  of  speech,  and  guarantees  of  personal 
and  property  rights  were  declared  and  upheld  by  the 
authority  of  the  United  States. 

Is  it  any  wonder  that  all  this  flood  of  new  liberties, 
rights,  and  knowledge  has  produced  intellectual  rioting  and 

27 


m 


% 


t=3 


72L.t  •:  LEPANTm- 


;  B  EJS  G  U  E  T  \. 

/       '        -z^      TniluUd    -;*'■• 

\  iifflifliS:  -1^*— -^v        — — 


or  T\n 

PHILIPPINE 

MISSION 

OF  THE 

UNITED  BRETHREN 
IN    CHRIST. 


.Organized  Churches 

(D    San  Fernando 

Me&dqu&rters 

PublLshmg  Plant 

Younj Women's  BibleTraining 

Mission  Residence.        .School 
®  Manila 

Union  Theologic&l  Seminarv' 
Dormitory  for  Young  Men 
9    TACUDin  -  Mission  Residence 

9    BACUIO  ■  RestHonie 


*  School  tor  Bo>3 


that  the  student  world  is  groping  in  uncertainty,  in  a  mael- 
strom of  social,  political,  and  religious  ideas? 

It  is  gratifying  that  with  the  entrance  of  all  these  new 
ideas  the  open  Bible  and  the  gospel  were  introduced  to 
furnish  new  moral  motives  to  a  newly  awakened  race. 
Thank  God,  the  open  Bible  takes  the  place  of  domineering 
priest  and  tyrannical  church.  Earnest  preachers  proclaim 
the  gospel  and  hold  up  challenging  and  satisfying  ideals 
of  spiritual  and  social  life. 

Population  and  Division  of  Responsibility.  The  islands 
have  a  population  of  nine  millions  in  round  numbers.  One 
million  or  more  are  primitive  unchristianized  Pagans  and 
Mohammedans.  The  other  millions  have  assimilated  more 
or  less  of  the  fifteenth  or  sixteenth  century  Spanish  Roman 
Catholic  ideals. 

When  Protestant  missionaries  entered  they  organized 
"The  Evangelical  Union,"  the  aim  of  which  is  to  make  a 
solid  impact  of  Christianity  on  the  islands.  They  divided 
up  the  responsibility  for  the  evangelization  of  the  territory 
so  that  each  mission  has  its  own  field,  and  no  time,  money, 
or  energv  is  wasted  duplicating  each  other's  efforts  or 
traveling  over  each  other's  field. 

The  districts  assigned  to  the  United  Brethren  Church  in 
addition  to  the  city  of  Manila,  which  is  common  territory, 
consists  of  Union  and  the  sub-provinces,  Benguet,  Am- 
burayan.  Lepanto,  and  Ifugao.  This  territory  contains 
150.000  Ilocanos  and  230,000  Igorrotes  or  primitive  peoples. 

Manila  and  the  Union  Theological  Seminary.  In  visit- 
ing our  mission  in  these  islands  we  will  begin  with  Manila, 
a  city  which  has  a  population  of  350,000.  The  United 
Brethren  are  working  among  the  25,000  Ilocanos  of  the  city. 
A  large  building  has  been  rented,  containing  a  chapel  in 
which  our  vigorous  Ilocano  congregation  worships.  It 
also  provides  dormitory  room  for  about  forty  young  men 

29 


who  are  attending  the  private  and  commercial  schools  of 
the  city.  Under  the  influence  of  such  a  center  many  of 
these  young  men  become  Christians.  One  recent  convert 
is  a  very  efficient  teacher  and  author  of  several  pamphlets 
on  teaching.  This  congregation  is  the  center  for  evangel- 
istic work  carried  to  diiTerent  sections  of  the  city. 

In  this  city  is  the  Union  Theological  Seminary  where  the 
h'ilipin(j  ministers  of  all  evangelical  churches  working  in 
the  islands,  receive  their  theological  training.  Rev.  and 
Mrs.  S.  B.  Kurtz,  whose  furlough  is  now  due,  have  ably 
represented  our  mission  in  this  school.  Rev.  and  Mrs. 
C.  C.  Witmer,  of  San  Fernando,  will  take  up  this  work 
in  June,  1918. 

All  of  our  ordained  Filipino  pastors  received  the  major 
part  of  their  training  in  this  seminary.  The  man  thus 
trained  in  all  the  communions  are  leading  the  Filipmo 
churches  throughout  the  islands  to  victory.  Permanent 
buildings  must  soon  be  erected  for  this  training  school. 
Our  share  will  be  about  $5,000. 

San  Fernando  a  Strong  Center.  Let  us  take  the  train 
and  ride  north  from  Manila  150  miles  through  the  fertile 
plains  of  Luzon  to  San  Fernando,  our  mission  headquarters. 
San  Fernando,  with  a  population  of  20,000,  is  the  capital  of 
Union  Province.  This  is  the  home  of  Superintendent  and 
Mrs.  H.  W.  Widdoes,  Miss  Matilda  C.  Weber,  and  Miss 
Agnes  Drury.  Here  we  have  a  missionary  residence,  the 
Young  Women's  Bible  Training  School,  the  publishing 
house  of  the  mission,  called  The  Evangel  Press,  and  a 
beautiful  concrete  chapel.  Adjoining  the  chapel  and  resi- 
dence lots  we  have  purchased  three  acres  on  which  to 
locate  the  new  training  school  building  'and  the  hospital. 
From  this  center  the  evangelistic,  publishing,  and  super- 
visory activities  of  the  missions  are  directed. 

Seeing  the  necessity  for  touching  life  at  its  source — in 

30 


the  home,  the  Young  Women's  Bible  Training  School  was 
opened  seven  years  ago  in  a  bamboo  building.  Every  year 
since,  it  has  been  taxed  to  its  capacity.  Last  year  and  this, 
the  mission  house  has  also  been  partly  given  to  the  use  of 
the  training  school. 

The  Evangel  Press  building  is  located  in  a  part  of  the 
city  where  students  from  the  Provincial  High  School  con- 
gregate, and  in  it  we  have  the  Arford  reading  room  which  is 
open  every  day  for  young  men.  It  is  widely  used  and  a 
popular  place.  From  this  publishing  house  nearly  two  and 
one-half  million  pages  of  literature  are  issued  annually. 
A  weekly  family  religious  paper  is  published  and  has  a 
wide  circulation.  We  have  the  leading  publishing  house 
among  nearly  a  million  people  speaking  Ilocano.  New  equip- 
ment is  urgently  needed  if  we  are  to  meet  the  future  de- 
mands for  Christian  literature. 

Our  mission  also  provides  dormitories  for  young  men 
and  young  women  students  attending  the  Provincial  High 
School,  thus  providing  for  the  development  of  their  devo- 
tional and  religious  lives.  No  part  of  our  field  is  yielding 
more  attractive  results  to-day  nor  giving  so  certain  promise 
of  the  leadership  which  we  shall  need  in  the  years  to  come. 

Medical  Aid  Without  a  Doctor.  The  missionary  in 
charge  of  San  Fernando  wakes  every  morning  to  find  his 
porch  lined  with  people  needing  medical  help — wounds, 
fevers,  babies  covered  with  ulcers,  boils  to  be  lanced, 
teeth  to  be  pulled.  He  is  frequently  called  out  to  attend 
surgical  cases  that  should  have  the  attention  of  a  trained 
physician.  Frequently  the  patient  hovers  between  life  and 
death,  yet  the  missionary  must  take  the  responsibility,  for 
there  is  no  one  else  to  whom  they  can  go.  A  doctor  and 
a  hospital  is  a  most  urgent  need. 

Our  San  Fernando  Sunday  school  has  a  membership 
of  three  hundred.     A  young  men's  Bible  class  is  composed 

31 


Winning  the  Worlc  = 


United  Brethren  Suntlul 
A  teacher-training  class  in  this  scliool  is  just  completing  its  c< 


ill  (4  44iM^ 


Part  of  Our  Sunday  ^ 
The  Sanday  school  in  the  Pliilippines  is  but  sixteen  years  old  and  has  reaohet 

Tvan  attended 


Young  Life  for  Christ 


(hool.  Ponce,  Porto  Ri<'0. 

e.     Its  examination  g;rados  equal  tlie  best  in  our  schools  in  tlie   States. 


>ol,  Snn  Fernando,  P.  I. 

I    enrollment   of   over  60,000.     A    recent    Sunday-school    con-mention    held    in    Manila 

5.000  delegates. 


almost  entirely  of  high  school  boys,  and  has  a  membership 
of  from  sixty  to  ninety-five  young  men  annually.  The  Ex- 
celsior class  for  young-  women  enrolls  regularly  more  than 
thirty  young  women,  (iospel  teams  from  this  church  go  out 
every  Sunday  to  hold  from  four  to  eight  services  in  out- 
lying districts  of  the  town.  Two  churches  and  two  Sunday 
schools  have  been  organized  about  two  miles  out  from  this 
center,  and  are  conducted  by  these  teams.  They  also  hold 
regular  meetings  with  prisoners  in  the  provincial  jail,  where 
some  glorious  conversions  have  occurred.  These  gospel 
teams  report  their  afternoon  meetings  at  Christian 
Endeavor  meeting  every  Sunday  evening. 

Suffering  Loss  But  Winning  Christ  and  Many  Souls. 
Leaving  San  Fernando  for  a  visit  to  the  southern  part  of 
the  province,  we  journey  for  eight  miles  to  Bauang.  Here  we 
have  a  concrete  chapel  erected  by  the  joint  effort  of  the  mis- 
sion and  local  congregation.  One  of  the  leading  members 
of  this  congregation  is  supervising  teacher  in  charge  of  all 
schools  of  the  southern  half  of  the  province  of  Union.  From 
this  congregation  have  come  two  of  our  strong  Filipino 
pastors.  One  of  them  was  the  son  of  a  wealthy,  influential 
man,  who  bitterly  opposed  his  son's  accepting  the  gospel. 
He  even  borrowed  the  priest's  Bible  in  order  to  convince 
his  son  that  the  missionaries  were  in  error.  One  day  the 
young  man  met  the  missionary  on  the  north  bank  of  the 
Baong  River,  where  he  had  been  waiting  from  morning 
until  afternoon  in  order  that  he  might  not  miss  God's 
messenger  on  his  way  home  from  his  work.  He  told 
the  missionary  that  he  wished  to  be  baptized.  The  two 
moved  up  the  river,  a  little  way  from  the  prying  eyes  of 
persons  crossing  the  river,  and  there  together  the  pledges 
of  loyalty  to  Jesus  Christ  were  made  and  he  was  baptized. 
But,  oh,  the  persecution  which  followed!  His  father  was 
very  angry  and  sent  him  into  the  world  disinherited.  Friends 

34 


forsook  him  and  he  could  with  Paul  say  that  for  Christ 
he  had  "suffered  the  loss  of  all  things."  Later  he  was  gradu- 
ated from  the  Theological  Seminary,  was  ordained,  and  sent 
to  the  town  of  Segay,  among  the  Igorrotes,  who  ran  away 
and  hid  at  the  approach  of  the  missionary  party.  He  soon 
had  a  hundred  boys  and  girls  in  his  school,  teaching  them  the 
llocano  Bible,  as  well  as  other  branches.  xA.fter  a  little 
more  than  six  months'  work  in  this  town,  he  called  the 
missionary  to  come  and  baptize  forty-five  converts  and 
organize  a  church.  Last  year  a  party  of  trained  llocano 
workers  held  an  institute  for  local  church  workers  in  this 
town.  At  the  close  of  the  institute  thirty  new  members 
were  received  into  the  church  and  baptized.  Now  all  but 
two  or  three  old  men  in  the  whole  village  are  members  of 
the  United  Brethren  Church  and  rejoice  in  a  new  faith. 
A  zvhole  village  of  more  than  300  people  ivon  to  Jestis  Christ 
in  the  short  space  of  seven  years. 

The  Bauang  church  has  also  sent  out  from  its  homes 
two  of  our  trained  and  most  efficient  deaconesses.  From 
the  church  in  Bauang  North  has  sprung-  the  Second  Church 
on  the  south  side  of  the  river.  Second  Church  has  bought 
a  lot  and  is  now  building  a  chapel,  the  mission  merely 
furnishing  the  corrugated  iron  for  the  roof  and  the  cement 
for  the  floor,  Bauang  North  and  South  has  a  population 
of  10,000. 

Municipal  Officer  Installed  in  Protestant  Church,  It 
has  been  customary  in  the  Philippines  for  municipal  officers 
to  solemnize  their  inauguration  into  office  at  the  altar  of 
the  church.  At  the  last  election,  the  new  municipal  presi- 
dent of  Bauang-  refused  all  offers  of  service  from  the 
Roman  priests  and  insisted  on  taking  his  oath  of  office 
in  the  Protestant  chapel,  with  an  address  by  the  mission- 
ary, and  readings  from   the  Word  of  God. 

Tithing  Grain.     Up  the  river  six  miles  from  Bauang  we 

35 


come  to  the  town  of  Naguilian  with  a  population  of  11,000. 
Here  our  congregation  is  busily  engaged  in  constructing  a 
commodious  chapel.  They  have  secured  one  of  the  most 
desirable  lots  in  the  entire  municipality  located  between 
the  new  municipal  building,  the  new  market,  and  the 
new  school.  The  church  has  the  distinction  of  having 
a  group  of  tithers  who  separate  the  Lord's  grain  from  their 
own,  when  they  put  it  in  their  granaries.  Here,  last  confer- 
ence, a  young  woman  was  converted  and  baptized  and  then 
cruelly  beaten  by  her  father  until  there  were  great  black 
and  blue  marks  all  over  her  body.  She  said,  "Father,  you 
may  kill  me  if  you  will,  but  I  shall  not  give  up  my  faith  in 
my  Savior  Jesus  Christ."  Her  sweet  spirit  melted  her 
father's  iron  will  and  latest  reports  say  he  too  is  now  listen- 
ing to  the  old,  old  story. 

About  thirty  miles  southeast  of  Naguilian,  one  mile 
high,  is  the  famous  city  of  Baguio,  the  great  summer  resort 
of  the  Philippines.  Here  we  have  a  very  earnest  congrega- 
tion which  would  long  ago  have  grown  to  be  many  had  it 
not  been  for  the  shifting  character  of  the  population.  The 
treasurer  and  leading  member  of  this  church  a  few  years 
ago  was  a  naked  Igorot  boy.  To-day  he  is  a  fine  property 
clerk  and  very  influential  witness  for  the  gospel.  Because 
of  the  shifting  character  of  this  population  it  will  be 
necessary  for  the  mission  to  furnish  a  larger  amount  of  the 
capital  needed  to  erect  a  suitable  chapel  than  elsewhere  on 
the  field.  (The  Roman  Catholic  Church  has  spent  literally 
hundreds  of  thousands  in  preparing  chapels  and  homes  and 
schools  and  dormitories  for  the  difl^erent  orders  of  their 
church  in  this  splendid  resort.) 

Returning  to  Bauang  and  going  south  we  come  to  the 
Httle  city  of  Cava,  containing  4,000  population.  Here  was 
organized  the  first  United  Brethren  Church  in  the  Philip- 
pines.    It  is  a  beautiful  concrete  chapel,  made  possible  by 

36 


gifts  from  the  men  of  the  Otterbein  charge,  East  Ohio  Con- 
ference. Four  annual  conference  preachers  have  come  from 
this  church,  two  of  whom  are  graduates  of  the  seminary 
and  ordained.  The  municipal  government  in  Cava  is  the 
cleanest  in  the  whole  province  which  is  an  evidence  that  the 
United  Brethren  churches  in  the  Philippines  are  exerting 
an  ever-growing  influence. 

Churches  Rising  Through  Persecution.  About  four  miles 
south  of  Cava  is  the  city  of  Aringay  with  a  population  of 
about  8,000.  Here  the  gospel  met  most  determined  resist- 
ance, but  for  the  fact  that  a  Spanish  teacher  had  the  license 
to  own  a  Spanish  Bible  in  other  days,  it  would  have  been 
more  difficult  for  the  gospel  to  win  any  standing.  Through 
the  use  of  this  Roman  Catholic  Bible  the  teacher  was  con- 
verted and  has  since  been  an  enthusiastic  and  insistent 
preacher  of  the  Word  and  an  advocate  of  Bible  study.  This 
church  has  the  promise  of  a  very  fine  lot  in  a  strategic 
position  and  has  a  building  enterprise  under  way.  This 
is  one  of  the  churches  which  has  grown  up  through  great 
persecution  and  tribulation. 

Four  miles  south  of  Aringay  we  come  to  Agoo  with 
a  population  of  13,000  and  the  center  of  commerce  and  agri- 
culture for  the  southern  half  of  the  province.  Here  our 
church  has  a  large  chapel,  built  almost  entirely  by  the 
people.  This  church  has  a  number  of  strong,  consecrated 
laymen  and  lay  preachers  among  whom  may  be  mentioned 
Pio  Dungan.  Old  Brother  Pio  is  instant  in  season  and 
out  of  season.  He  never  ceases  to  fight  sin  and  supersti- 
tion. He  gives  half  of  his  time  to  witnessing  in  nearby 
villages.  His  sons  and  daughters,  most  of  whom  are  now 
married,  are  substantial  members  of  the  church.  One 
daughter  is  a  student  in  the  Young  Women's  Bible  Training 
School. 

37 


Priests  Seek  to  Hinder  the  Work.  Five  miles  northeast 
of  Agoo  we  come  to  the  city  of  Tubao,  containing  a  popula- 
tion of  8,000,  and  situated  in  a  very  fertile  valley.  This  is 
one  of  the  congregations  which  has  suffered  much  because  of 
persecution.  Two  Belgian  priests  were  stationed  here  to  off- 
set the  influence  of  our  work.  On  a  recent  occasion  when 
the  Roman  Catholic  bishop  visited  Tubao  the  priests  were 
anxious  to  have  the  officers  of  the  municipality  meet  him 
and  do  him  homage,  but  every  officer  refused  to  take  part 
in  the  public  reception.  On  the  occasion  of  the  visit  of 
Bishop  Howard,  twenty-one  days  later,  when  our  new  chapel 
was  dedicated,  these  municipal  officers  were  invited  to 
attend  the  ceremony.  They  all  came  and  seemed  to  be 
pleased,  and  one  made  the  remark.  "Your  bishop  talks  like 
a  brother  and  not  like  a  ruler." 

Returning  to  Agoo  and  going  south  we  pass  through 
Santo  Tomas,  where  our  church  has  endured  many  hard- 
ships. 

Southeast  of  Santo  Tomas  about  fifteen  miles  we  reach 
Rosario,  adjacent  to  which  we  have  five  other  congrega- 
tions. Rosario  has  a  population  of  about  2,500,  and  some 
of  the  municipal  officers  and  best  people  of  the  place  are 
members  of  our  local  church.  They  are  planning  for  a 
substantial  chapel  and  will  need  some  help  from  America. 

A  Visit  to  Churches  North  of  San  Fernando.  Returning 
to  San  Fernando  we  journey  northward  and  pass  through 
San  Juan  and  Bacnotan,  cities  of  10,000  and  9,000  respec- 
tively, in  each  of  which  we  have  growing  churches. 

Our  next  stop  is  at  Balaoan,  which  has  a  poplation  of 
10,000.  Here  we  have  two  congregations,  one  in  the  central 
part  of  the  towMi,  and  another  some  three  miles  in  the 
country.  Other  churches  will  soon  be  organized  from 
Balaoan  as  a  center.  A  pastor  and  a  deaconess  have  come 
from  our  local  church  at  this  place. 

38 


Walked  All  Night  To  Attend  Bible  Conference.  Four 
miles  north  on  the  Manila  North  Road  we  come  to  the  city 
of  Bangar,  in  the  valley  of  the  Amburayan.  In  this  city 
of  10,000  people  we  have  an  energetic  congregation.  The 
head  of  the  first  family  of  this  church  at  the  advanced  age 
of  seventy,  walked  all  night  in  order  to  attend  one  of  the 
first  Bible  conferences  held  in  San  Fernando.  This  congre- 
gation is  planning  to  build  a  larger  and  more  substantial 
chapel. 

Crossing  the  river  at  Bangar,  we  reach  Tagudin,  a  town 
of  8,000  population.  The  capital  of  the  sub-province  of 
Amburayan.  Tagudin  is  connected  with  the  Inland  Prov- 
ince by  a  good  mountain  road.  Our  congregation  here  has 
a  splendid  chapel,  largely  the  gift  of  the  Women's  Mission- 
ary society  of  Canton,  Ohio.  The  keen,  energetic  pastor 
has  organized  gospel  teams  with  which  he  is  winning  great 
victories.  The  Roman  Catholic  Church  has  put  about  fifteen 
Belgian  nuns  and  two  priests  in  Tagudin  in  order  to  estab- 
lish headquarters  for  the  mountain  province,  and  to  smothei 
the  little  evangelical  congregation,  which  has  been  making 
a  steady  growth  year  by  year.  This  congregation  gvive 
last  year  the  largest  missionary  ofi:ering  of  any  of  our 
churches  in  the  islands. 

Over  a  five  thousand  foot  divide  through  beautiful 
mountain  scenery  we  travel  forty  miles  to  Cervantes,  at 
the  cross  roads  of  the  mountain  province  and  a  most  strate- 
gic center.  The  present  pastor  is  the  one  who  led  the  congre- 
gation at  Segay  to  such  a  glorious  victory. 

The  Call  of  the  Untouched  Tribes.  Going  south  from 
Cervantes  on  horseback  we  come  to  the  practically  un- 
touched field  of  the  Igorrotes.  This  country  is  rich  in  gold 
and  minerals.  Two  years  ago  the  Filipino  church  organized 
its  own  missionary  society  and  sent  its  first  missionary  to 
the  field.    They  entered  the  Igorot  center  of  Cabayan.    The 

39 


government  has  a  boarding  school  for  boys  at  this  place, 
and  is  doing  a  very  constructive  piece  of  educational  work. 
Our  Filipino  missionary  has  been  winning  victories  and 
has  organized  a  congregation.  To  the  northeast  lies  the 
land  of  the  Ifugao  people,  numbering  160,000.  For  them 
no  evangelistic  work  has  yet  been  done.  The  only  book 
printed  in  their  language  is  the  book  of  Luke,  translated 
by  an  American  teacher  who  lived  eight  years  among  them, 
and  published  l)y  the  American  Bible  Society. 


40 


JAPAN 

Population,   52,000,000;  Mission  Opened,   1895;  Mission- 
aries, 8;  Native  Workers,  21;  Organized 
Churches,   19. 

Fifty  years  ago  it  would  have  been  impossible  for  us 
to  visit  Japan  on  a  mission  for  the  kingdom  of  God.  Sign 
boards  in  every  town  bore  the  following  edict : 

"Hitherto  the  Christian  religion  has  been  for- 
bidden, and  the  order  must  be  strictly  kept. 

"The  corrupt  religion  is  strictly  forbidden. 

"Done  in  the  third  month  of  the  fourth  (year) 
of  Kyo.     (March  1868.)" 

Early  missionaries  and  Christians  suffered  great  perse- 
cution. As  late  as  1872  there  were  but  ten  Japanese  Prot- 
estant Christians  in  the  Empire.  Not  until  1887 
did  the  Japanese  publish  the  Bible  in  their  own  language. 

But  the  day  of  Christ's  miracle  working  power  is  not 
passed.  Japan  to-day  is  open,  receptive,  teachable,  and 
eagerly  seeking  for  the  best  from  every  nation. 

Five  United  Brethren  Churches  in  Tokyo.  In  visiting 
Japan  our  steamship  brings  us  to  Yokohama.  Looking  east- 
ward we  see  clearly  the  famous  Fujiyama  snow-capped. 
On  going  ashore  we  get  into  a  jinrikisha,  Japan's  time- 
honored  conveyance,  in  order  to  catch  the  first  train  for 
Tokyo,  eighteen  miles  away.  Tokyo  is  the  capital  of  Japan 
and  has  a  population  of  more  than  2,000.000  people.  This 
is  the  headquarters  of  our  mission.  Here  live  our  superin- 
tendent. Dr.  Joseph  Cosand,  and  his  aunt.  Miss  Ellen 
Moore,  and  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Warren  H.  Hayes.  Scattered 
throughout  tJiis  qrcat  city,  zvhich  ranks  sixth  in  siac  among 
the  largest  cities  of  the  ivorld,  are  five  organi.':ed  United 
Brethren  churches. 

Our  Honjo  Church  in  this  city  furnishes  a  practical 
illustration  of  the  influence  of  our  Sunday  school  and  church. 
One  member,  who  in  his  student  days  was  superintendent 
of  this  school,  is  now  a  major  in  the  navy,  and  was  recently 
in    England    on    an    important    mission.      He    is    an    active 

41 


'Y~''^9t} 


worker  in  the  church.  Among-  other  members  who  were 
won  as  boys  through  the  Sunday  school  is  an  architect,  a 
banker,  and  an  influential  dentist.  The  latter  is  the  present 
Sunday-school  superintendent.  The  young  men  of  this 
church  go  out  frequently  and  hold  meetings  in  different 
sections  of  this  manufacturing  district,  and  also  in  neighbor- 
ing  towns. 

Right  dozvn  in  the  very  heart  of  the  business  section 
of  this  great  city  is  located  our  Nihombashi  Church.  It  is 
situated  in  the  oldest  and  most  congested  section  of  Tokyo. 
Our  pastor  here  was  an  honor  student  in  a  law  school  before 
he  decided  to  enter  the  ministry.  He  likewise  carried  the 
honors  later  in  the  Theological  Seminary.  This  church 
is  beginning  a  campaign  to  raise  funds  for  a  new  church. 
Their  plan  is  to  put  up  a  building  which  will  be  open  every 
day  in  the  week  and  be  the  social  center  for  the  young  men 
employed  in  this  congested  business  district.  They  will 
need  help  from  friends  in  America  in  order  to  build  a  church 
which  will  meet  their  needs  and  opportunities. 

In  the  zvestern  part  of  the  city  in  a  Hue  residence  section 
is  located  our  Oknbo  Church.  Wide  awake  and  aggressive 
with  Sunday  school,  Women's  society,  and  Young  Men's 
association.  The  membership  is  divided  into  three  groups 
which  meet  regularly  for  Bible  study  and  prayer. 

Doctor  Cosand  writes  of  a  recent  meeting  in  this  church 
at  which  he  and  the  Japanese  pastor  spoke.  There  were 
sixty-five  present  who  were  not  Christians  and  when  the 
opportunity  was  given  to  decide  for  Christ,  forty-five  made 
the  decision. 

The  pastor  of  this  church  was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War.  One  day  while  resisting  a  Russian  charge 
at  Port  Arthur  a  bomb  fell  at  his  feet.  With  the  hope  of 
saving  his  men  he  picked  it  up  to  throw  it  back,  but  it 
exploded  and  tore  off  his  right  arm  at  the  elbow  and  tore 
out  his  right  eye.  Later  he  became  a  Christian  and  took 
a  theological  course  and  has  been  wonderfully  used  of  God 
in  the  ministry.  His  people  are  now  in  a  campaign  to  raise 
$3,000  for  a  new  church.  Their  present  rented  building 
cannot  accommodate  the   people   who   come, 

43 


Other  churches  in  Tokyo  are  Harajuku,  in  a  great 
student  center,  and  Shimo  Shibuya,  which  has  a  splendid 
kindergarten,  and  where  Mr.  Hayes  conducts  student  Bible 
classes  for  young  men  from  the  dormitory  of  the  Keio 
University  nearby. 

Our  Churches  Adjacent  to  Tokyo.  Taking  a  short  trip 
from  Tokyo  by  steam  car  we  reach  Noda,  about  twenty- 
five  miles  north  of  the  city.  Noda  has  a  population  of  8,000 
and  is  an  important  manufacturing  town.  The  neighboring 
territory  is  so  densely  settled  that  one  hardly  gets  out  of 
one  village  before  reaching  another.  Our  church  in  Noda 
is  one  of  the  oldest  of  our  mission  in  Japan.  The  Sunday 
night  services  are  well  attended,  but  the  morning  Sunday 
school  is  made  up  largely  of  children,  for  working  people 
and  merchants  have  no  Sunday. 

Twelve  miles  from  Noda  by  boat  we  reach  Matsudo,  the 
county  seat  with  a  population  of  12,000.  This  is  a  great 
agricultural  center  and  has  a  splendid  horticultural  school. 
It  is  a  very  difficult  field  for  Christian  work.  There  are 
nine  temples  and  many  shrines  in  the  town,  but  the  church 
is  winning,  especially  among  the  young  people  and 
student  class.  The  pastor  holds  services  regularly  in  six 
other  towns  surrounding  Matsudo. 

On  an  eastbound  train  from  Tokyo  we  reach  Funabashi 
in  twenty  minutes.  The  population  is  13,000.  Our  little 
church  here  h?s  just  finished  a  splendid  new  church  build- 
ing, which  meant  much  in  sacrifice  on  their  part  to  build  it. 
Six  miles  away  is  a  great  military  cantonment.  A  number 
of  officers  and  soldiers  attend  our  services. 

A  colporteur  has  been  giving  all  his  time  to  the  work  in 
this  Chiba  Ken  district  which  surrounds  Tokyo  to  the  north 
and  east.  He  has  organized  Sunday  schools  in  new  towns, 
and  is  completing  a  canvass  of  40,000  homes,  selling  Bibles 
and  Testaments,  and  distributing  other  Christian  literature. 
He  has  secured  a  long  list  of  names  and  addresses  of  persons 
who  want  to  know  more  about  Christianity. 

A  Trip  Westward.  We  will  now  journey  westward  by 
train  from  Tokyo  and  pass  through  a  number  of  towns  and 
cities  ranging  from  6,000  to  50,000  in  population — Odawara, 
Numazu,  Shizuoka,  and  Nagoya.     In  each  of  these  places 

44 


we  have  successful  mission  work.  The  church  at  Shizuoka 
conducts  two  missions.  The  excellent  church  house  here 
was  made  possible  by  gifts  from  the  Christian  Endeavor 
societies  of  our  churches  in  America. 

Our  train  passes  on  to  Kusatsu,  Otsu,  and  Kyoto.  We 
will  pay  a  visit  to  the  Shiga  Ken  province  in  which  Rev. 
Monroe  Crecelius  laid  down  his  Hie  ten  years  ago.  Rev. 
and  Mrs.  J.  Edgar  Knipp  and  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Kiyoshi  Yabe 
have  taken  up  this  work  with  enthusiasm. 

Coming  Into  the  Kingdom  Through  Great  Difficulties. 
We  will  appreciate  something  of  the  difficulties  and  opposi- 
tion to  be  overcome  in  Shiga  Ken  when  we  meet  the  prin- 
cipal of  the  public  schools  in  one  of  the  county  seats.  He 
was  born  before  the  first  Protestant  Christian  was  baptized 
in  Japan.  lie  grew  up  at  a  time  when  Christianity  was 
hated  as  an  evil  sect  and  was  strictly  prohibited.  This 
school  principal  naturally  has  a  strong  prejudice  against 
Christianity,  and  again  and  again  he  has  exerted  his  in- 
fluence to  prevent  the  boys  and  girls  of  his  school  from 
attending  our  Sunday  school. 

Another  example  of  opposition  occurred  one  Sunday 
morning  just  as  the  Sunday  school  was  about  to  open.  The 
superintendent  noticed  one  of  the  older  girls  crying  as  if 
her  heart  would  break.  She  had  partly  fallen  to  the  ground, 
and  a  young  woman  was  trying  to  pull  her  away  from  the 
gate.  Upon  inquiry  he  learned  that  it  was  her  older  sister 
who  had  been  sent  by  the  father  to  prevent  her  from  attend- 
ing our  school.  The  girl  was  one  of  the  active  Junior 
Endeavorers  and  had  always  been  regular  at  Sunday  school. 
Now  she  never  comes.  The  reason  is  that  her  father  hap- 
pened to  be  at  church  one  Sunday  evening  when  Mr.  Yabe 
was  explaining  that  while  every  Japanese  should  give 
respect  and  reverence  to  the  Emperor,  God  must  have  the 
supreme  place  in  the  heart  of  a  Christian.  The  man  went 
away  angry  and  said,  "If  that  is  Christianity,  I  do  not  want 
any  of  it  for  myself  or  family,"  and  he  forbade  the  mem- 
bers of  his  family  to  come. 

These  two  incidents  illustrate  somewhat  the  difficulties 
under  which  the  work  is  being  conducted  in  Japan,  espe- 
ciall}^  in  the  smaller  towns  and  country  places.     The  vast 

45 


Conj^reKation  at   Okubo,  .Inpnn,  on   Its  Seventh  Anniversary. 


i\Ir.  Vahe  and  His  "Vaiijjnard"  at   Zoze. 
(Ready   to   distriitute   posters   anuouuciug:   evangelistic   meetings.) 


majority  of  the  people  have  no  knowledge  of  what  Chris- 
tianity really  means,  and  the}'  are  prejudiced  against  it. 

In  spite  of  this,  however,  we  are  making  real  progress. 
For  instance  in  the  town  of  Zeze,  where  our  work  was  begun 
less  than  three  years  ago,  twenty-five  of  the  leading  men, 
including  the  ex-mayor,  and  the  principals  of  four  schools 
gave  their  public  endorsement  to  the  campaign  to  secure 
money  for  purchasing  a  lot  for  the  "Zeze  Christian  Taber- 
nacle," which  is  the  name  of  the  new  church  now  being 
constructed.  IMr.  Knipp  and  Mr.  Yabe  are  doing  a  great 
work  among  the  students  of  the  thirty-five  public  schools 
in  Otsu,  the  capital  of  this  province  and  in  the  two  neigh- 
boring counties.  Their  personal  work  among  these  young- 
people  is  destroying  the  age-long  prejudice  against  Chris- 
tianity and  preparing  the  way  for  a  large  and  rich  harvest 
in  coming  years. 

The  two  kindergartens  conducted  by  Mrs.  Knipp  in 
Zeze  and  Otsu  are  factors  in  starting  the  little  ones  aright 
and   in  gaining  an   entrance  into  homes. 

To  the  south  and  west  of  Kyoto  are  the  cities  of  Osaka 
and  Kobe,  large  commercial  centers  where  the  throb  of 
industrial  action  reminds  one  of  American  cities.  In  each 
of  these  centers  we  have  prosperous  churches. 

The  Power  of  One  Christian  Layman.  Returning  to 
our  West  Kyoto  Church  we  will  be  inspired  by  the  story 
of  one  humble  Christian  layman,  fully  consecrated  to  God. 
About  fifteen  years  ago  a  young  man  employed  as  a  prison 
guard  came  to  the  English  Bible  class  carried  on  in  the 
home  of  one  of  our  missionaries.  English,  rather  than 
Christianity,  was  what  he  was  after.  At  the  Bible  class 
meeting  attention  was  called  to  a  service  in  Japanese  con- 
ducted in  the  evening  by  Mr.  Ishiguro,  who  was  then  a 
student  in  the  theological  department  of  the  Doshisha.  The 
young  man  attended  and  after  about  a  year  he  was  baptized 
and  at  once  was  anxious  to  have  a  service  held  in  his  own 
home  which  was  about  two  miles  from  our  First  Church. 
A  Sunday  school  was  started  there  which  was  the  beginning 
of  our  West  Kyoto  Church. 

A  few  years  later  he  moved  to  Osaka  which  is  the  largest 
commercial  port  in  Japan.     He  at  once  invited  to  his  home 

47 


young  high  school  and  commercial  students,  presumably  to 
help  them  in  English,  but  at  the  same  time  he  wanted  to 
help  them  to  know  his  Savior.  He  asked  Mr.  Ishiguro  to 
come  down  from  Kyoto  and  speak  to  them  and  thus  our 
church  in   Osaka  was  started. 

A  Service  in  Mr.  Ishiguro's  Church.  Let  us  visit  our 
First  Church  in  Kyoto.  As  we  come  near  we  notice  a  group 
of  young  men  on  a  street  corner,  with  a  large  crowd  of 
people  gathered  about  them.  They  are  singing  "Onward, 
Christian  Soldiers"  in  Japanese.  Then  one  of  them  gives 
a  gospel  message  and  invites  the  crowd  to  the  evangelistic 
services  in  the  church.  We  peep  through  the  door  of  the 
church  and  find  the  auditorium  filled.  Those  long  strips 
of  paper  hanging  in  front  give  the  subjects  of  the  speakers. 
One  reads,  "The  God  of  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,"  and 
the  other  "About  Sin."  That  is  one  of  the  subjects  hard  for 
a  Japanese  to  understand  since  their  word  for  sin  means 
"crime"  or  an  oft'ense  against  the  government,  and  has  no 
reference  to  one's  relation  to  God.  The  result  is  that  the 
very  foundation  of  Japan's  national  life  is  unstable  and  many 
of  her  leaders  are  realizing  that  the  nation  needs  a  spiritual 
power  which  she  does  not  have.  She  is  seeking  for  it. 
America  has  it  and  must  give  it  to  this  nation  which  is 
strongly  influencing  the  entire  Orient. 

Many  will  be  glad  to  learn  that  Mr.  Ishiguro,  who  has 
been  su'itering  with  serious  heart  trouble,  has  in  addition 
to  his  work  in  the  church,  opened  a  free  dispensary  for  the 
aid  of  the  sick  and  unfortunate.  In  this  noble  work  he  has 
the  co-operation  of  five  hundred  others  who  are  each  pay- 
ing at  least  five  cents  a  month  for  its  promotion. 

Co-operating  with  the  Doshisha  University.  Japan 
gives  more  attention  to  education  than  any  other 
of  our  foreign  fields.  The  United  Brethren  and  Congrega- 
tional missions  are  co-operating  in  the  Doshisha  University. 
This  Christian  school,  which  enrolled  the  past  year  1,549 
students,  has  done  a  great  work  in  training  leaders  for  the 
evangelization  of  Japan.  Rev.  B.  F.  Shively  is  our  mission- 
ary professor  in  the  theological  department  of  this  school. 
He  is  specializing  on  religious  education  and  practical  Sun- 
day-school  work.      He   has    a   large   field   and   one   that   is 

48 


destined  to  grow  in  favor  as  the  Sunday  school  becomes  a 
larger  and  larger  factor  in  foreign  missionary  work. 

A  Far  Reaching  Campaign.  A  great  interdenominational 
evangelistic  campaign  has  just  closed  in  Japan.  It  was 
organized  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  the  message  to  wholly 
untouched  rural  regions.  Nearly  800,000  attended  the  meet- 
ings and  27,000  decisions  for  Christ  were  recorded.  Many 
of  these  have  been  enrolled  in  Bible  classes  for  further 
instruction.  As  a  result  of  this  campaign  the  Protestant 
missionaries  have  united  in  a  call  for  474  new  missionaries, 
for  they  found  that  fully  thirty  millions  of  Japan's  fifty-two 
millions  have  never  had  an  opportunity  to  accept  Jesus 
Christ. 

A  Challenge  to  the  Difficult.  Japan  to-day  presents  a 
mighty  challenge  to  the  church.  Buddhism  and  Shintoism 
are  entrenched  everywhere.  Not  a  single  emperor  in  all 
Japan's  history  has  been  anything  but  a  Buddhist  or  a 
Shintoist.  Temples  and  shrines  crowd  every  city  and  town 
and  country  side.  There  are  more  Buddhist  priests  in  Japan 
than  all  the  Protestant  church  members  combined. 

But  Japan  is  a  plastic  nation.  The  student  and  educated 
classes  are  breaking  away  from  their  old  religions  and  many, 
very  many  of  them,  knowing  nothing  better,  are  plunging 
into  rationalism  and  skepticism.  Her  destiny  will  largely 
be  determined  by  either  the  obedience  or  the  indifference  of 
the  Christian  church  which  alone  has  it  in  her  power  to 
give  or  withhold  Jesus  Christ — Japan's  greatest  need. 

The  multitudes  who  still  bow  in  ignorance  to  heathen 
gods  challenge  us ;  the  thousands  of  students  whose  faith 
in  these  gods  has  been  destroyed  and  who  are  spiritually  be- 
wildered, challenge  us ;  the  missionaries,  so  few  in  number 
for  such  a  great  task,  challenge  us  ;  the  noble  bands  of  native 
Christians  who  have  faced  ridicule  and  persecution  for 
Christ's  sake,  challenge  us  to  show  in  our  lives  marks  of 
sacrifice  for  him.  But  louder  than  the  call  from  all  these 
is  the  call  of  our  crucified  Lord.  "If  any  man  will  come  after 
me  let  him  deny  himself  .  .  and  follow  me."  Only  as  the 
church  to-day  follows  in  the  footsteps  of  her  Lord  through 
the  garden  to  Calvary  will  she  be  able  to  bring  a  living 
Lord  to  these  waiting  multitudes. 

49 


CHINA 

Population  of  China,  400,000,000;  Our  Mission  Opened, 

1889  ;  Missionaries,  16  ;  Native  Workers,  47  ; 

Organized  Churches,  7. 

Strange  that  a  country  whose  history  dates  2,810  years 
before  the  angels  announced  the  l)irth  of  the  world's  Re- 
deemer should  have  to  wait  more  than  1,800  years  after  that 
Redeemer  told  his  disciples  to  "Go,  tell"  before  they  receive 
a  messenger  with  the  "good  news."  Yet  this  has  been  true 
of  China.  Before  Abram  went  out  from  his  home  at  Ur, 
China  was  a  growing  nation,  developing  her  industries, 
literature,  religion,  etc.,  which  remained  unchanged  through 
all  these  centuries.  Other  nations  rose  and  fell  but  she  con- 
tinued shut  in  from  all  the  outside  world — the  biggest 
nation  in  all  history. 

Only  during  the  past  one  hundred  years  has  China  been 
coming  to  her  own.  Her  doors,  so  hermetically  sealed  to 
3II  the  outside  world,  yielded  to  the  ceaseless  knocking  of 
Christian  missionaries  and  to-day  we  find  her  knocking 
at  the  doors  of  Christian  nations  asking  for  that  Light  which 
has  so  long  been  denied  her. 

We  cannot  touch  upon  the  marvelous  work  of  mission- 
aries through  the  century  nor  the  price  they  paid  in  order 
to  plant  the  seed  of  the  gospel  on  native  soil.  We  can  take 
but  a  bird's-eye  view  of  what  our  own  United  Brethren 
missionaries  are  doing  to-day. 

Planting  the  Church  in  Largest  Pagan  City  on  Earth. 
Landing  at  Hong  Kong  we  take  the  river  steamer  and  go 
north  ninety  miles  to  Canton.  We  will  find  the  river  in 
Canton  congested  with  small  boats  anchored  close  to  the 
shore.  These  are  the  life  long  homes  of  300,000  of  her 
people.  Canton  is  the  largest  non-Christian  city  in  the 
world,  and  it  is  about  the  size  of  Chicago.  The  Pearl  River 
flows  through  the  citv  dividing  it  into  Canton  proper  and 
Honam  which  means  "south  of  the  river." 

The  United  Brethren  mission  is  located  on  the  Honam 
side  which  has  a  population  of  400.000.  There  is  only  one 
other  missionary  and  his  wife  besides  our  own  missionaries 

50 


OF 

CANTON 

AND 

ENVIRONS 

UNITED  BRETHREN  TERRITORY 

50UTn  CHINA 


t ORQANIZED  CHURCHES 

O    PREACHING  PLACES 

©  Canton  @  -Siu  Lam 


Headquarters 
Missionary  Residences 
*rouNDLiHc  Home 
Medical  Dispensary 
BoY'i  Crammar  School 


MIASIONABY  RLSIDEncU 

Miller  Seminars' 
Hospital 


working  among  this  dense  population.  Here  are  located 
Superintendent  and  Mrs.  E.  B.  Ward,  Rev.  and  Mrs.  C.  W. 
Shoop.  Dr.  Regina  M.  Bigler  and  Miss  May  Dick.  Prof,  and 
Mrs.  S.  W.  Kintigh,  and  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Cliff  Funk,  who 
went  to  China  about  a  year  ago,  are  living  in  Canton  at 
present  studying  the  language  and  helping  with  the  ac- 
counts, the  educational  and  evangelistic  work.  Our  mission 
is  located  within  a  stone's  throw  of  the  house  in  which 
Robert  Morrison,  the  first  missionary  to  China,  lived  in 
disguise  for  long  years,  mastering  the  language  and  trans- 
lating the  Scriptures. 

We  have  in  this  city,  which  is  the  headcjuarters  of  our 
mission,  one  church,  a  boys'  grammar  school,  a  girls'  day 
school,  a  kindergarten,  and  a  dispensary.  We  also  co- 
operate with  other  missions  in  the  Union  Theological 
Seminary,  for  the  training  of  native  pastors.  The  local 
church,  which  is  self-supporting,  is  coming  to  self-conscious- 
ness and  reaching  out  to  help  others. 

Winning  Souls  in  a  Street  Chapel.  On  one  of  the  busi- 
est, narrowest  streets,  for  they  average  from  but  six  to 
twelve  feet  wide,  is  located  a  street  chapel,  which  is  open 
every  day.  The  Chinese  are  too  poor  to  afiford  more  than 
two  meals  a  day.  These  are  eaten  at  9 :  00  a.m.  and  5  :  00 
p.  m.,  so  the  service  in  this  chapel  begins  about  noon.  The 
preacher  with  a  few  members  of  the  church  gather  and 
begin  to  sing  hymns.  Passersby  are  attracted  and  begin 
dropping  in,  while  others  crowd  about  the  door.  What  a 
motley  crowd  it  is  !  Here  come  chicken  peddlers,  fish  sellers, 
business  men  of  good  class,  thieves,  opium  smokers,  ha- 
bitual loafers,  etc.  The  native  pastor  or  missionary  will 
begin  talking,  or  it  may  be  a  layman  from  the  local  church, 
or  each  may  take  a  turn.  Questions  are  asked  and  answered. 
The  audience  will  be  constantly  changing.  Some,  however, 
will  be  interested  enough  to  remain  through  the  entire 
service.  It  is  in  these  street  chapels  that  points  of  contact 
are  established,  which  can  later  be  followed  up.  Others 
are  led  to  accept  Christ  and  enroll  in  Bible  study  classes 
preparatory  to  baptism  and  membership  in  the  local  church. 
A  man  who  was  a  gambler  by  trade  chanced  into  one  of 
these  services.     He  became  interested  and  came  again  and 

52 


again  and  finally  accepted  Christ.  Then  came  the  struggle 
to  change  his  form  of  business,  but  Christ  won,  and  he 
surrendered  it  with  nothing  else  in  sight.  After  six  months 
of  preparation  he  was  taken  into  the  church.  He  sold 
Gospels  at  a  salary  of  $3  a  month.  For  two  years  he  went 
without   regular   work  but   remained   faithful. 

Reaching  the  Heart  by  Healing  the  Body.  Another  great 
evangelistic  agency  is  the  dispensary.  Here  gather  from 
two  to  three  hundred  patients  every  dispensary  day — men, 
women,  and  children,  the  rich,  and  poor,  with  every  form  of 
disease.  To  this  waiting  throng,  the  faithful  Bible  woman 
or  native  pastor  brings  the  message  of  a  Physician  who  can 
cure  the  soul  and  bring  peace  and  joy.  Here  in  this  dark, 
crowded  waiting  room  many  for  the  first  time  catch  a 
glimpse  of  that  great  Light.  This  dispensary  in  which 
Doctor  Bigler  treats  18,000  to  20,000  patients  every  year  is 
conducted  in  two  small  rooms  in  the  rear  of  the  chapel. 
The  chapel  is  old  and  dilapidated  and  altogether  inadequate 
for  the  crowds  who  gather.  Friends  have  already  agreed 
to  contribute  funds  for  a  new  dispensary,  but  the  building 
in  which  the  dispensary,  Sunday  school,  and  preaching 
services  are  held  cannot  be  torn  down  for  the  new  dis- 
pensary until  a  new  church  building  is  erected,  for  there  is 
no  place  in  which  to  hold  these  services.  We  have  an  ex- 
cellent lot  for  the  new  church.  What  a  limitless  opportunity 
this — for  some  one  to  build  a  church  in  the  midst  of  300,000 
Christless  people ! 

Itinerating  in  a  Boat.  We  must  get  a  glimpse  of  a 
number  of  our  other  stations,  and  since  our  only  means  of 
circuit  riding  in  China  is  in  slow  river  boats,  we  must  plan 
for  an  early  start  from  Canton.  The  alarm  clock  is  set  for 
3 :  00  o'clock  a.  m.  The  boat  leaves  any  time  between  four 
and  six  o'clock.  If  you  have  not  finished  your  night's  rest 
you  may  engage  a  "berth" — a  board  covered  with  Chinese 
matting  and  a  good  substantial  pillow  of  glazed  tile.  Any- 
where from  a  dozen  to  several  hundred  passengers  may  be 
crowded  in  the  boat,  a  heterogeneous  company  in  pursuit 
of  a  variety  of  missions.  Opportunities  without  number  for 
forming  friendships  and  for  personal  work  present  them- 
selves.    Frequently  after  a  heart-to-heart  talk  and  the  ques- 

53 


tion,  "W'liy  are  you  not  a  Christian?"  the  missionary  will 
receive   the  reply,   "Nobody   ever  asked   me." 

On  our  way  down  the  river  we  pass  Kwai  Chau.  a  city 
of  fifty  thousand,  where  we  have  an  earnest  consecrated 
band  of  Christians.  They  are  zealously  reaching  forward  to 
self-support  and  are  also  conducting  meetings  in  a  neigh- 
boring town.  Through  great  sacrifice  and  with  the  help  of 
Christian  Endeavor  societies  of  Allegheny  Conference  they 
have  secured  funds  for  a  much  needed  church  home. 

Evangelizing  a  Great  City,  x^fter  about  six  hours  we 
land  at  Siu  Lam,  a  city  of  400,000  people.  It  is  situated  in 
a  good  agricultural  district  and  its  citizens  are  of  the  better 
class,  aggressive  and  favorable  to  all  progress  and  greatly 
interested  in  education.  An  electric  plant  has  been  installed 
in  the  city  during  the  past  year. 

Here,  where  our  missionaries  were  once  stoned  and 
driven  out,  we  now  have  a  strong  mission  with  Rev.  and 
Mrs.  F.  VV.  Davis  in  charge.  Our  church  is  the  only  one  in 
all  the  city.  We  have  one  central  church  which  is  self- 
supporting  and  wide  awake  in  evangelism.  Their  goal  for 
the  year  is  one  hundred  souls  and  at  the  time  of  their  latest 
reports  were  making  good  progress  toward  it.  Daily  noon 
prayer  meetings  are  being  held  at  the  church  and  the  mem- 
l:»ers  gather  to  pray  particularly  for  the  salvation  of  those 
of  their  own  households  and  neighbors.  During  the  summer 
vacation  the  students  are  organized  into  preaching  bands 
with  good  results.  The  city  has  been  canvassed  and  thou- 
sands of  Gospels  sold. 

A  few  years  ago  members  from  this  church  began  hold- 
ing services  in  a  densely  populated  section  of  the  city 
which  resulted  in  the  opening  of  another  chapel.  This 
church  is  experiencing  unusual  interest.  A  service  is  con- 
ducted every  night  in  the  week  as  well  as  on  Sunday.  The 
present  chapel  is  all  too  small  to  accommodate  those  who 
seek  to  get  in,  and  there  is  urgent  need  for  a  new  and  larger 
building.  Our  church  at  Hillsboro,  Ohio,  is  supporting  this 
district  of  Siu  Lam  with  its  prayers  and  gifts,  and  great 
results  are  hoped  for  in  the  coming  years.  A  few  laymen 
assisted  by  the  pastor  of  the  central  church  were  the  means 
of  opening  a  third  chapel.     Continuous  and  insistent  calls 

54 


from  all  parts  of  the  city  must  go  unheeded  because  of  in- 
sufficient workers  and  funds.  Not  until  at  least  ten  missions 
have  been  planted  will  we  in  any  adequate  measure  meet 
tlic  needs  of  this  great  city. 

An  Illustration  of  How  the  Gospel  Spreads.  A  farmer 
living  near  Siu  Lam  heard  the  gospel  in  this  city  and  became 
interested.  He  came  again  and  again  and  then  decided  to 
accept  Christ.  He  went  home  to  his  own  town  and  told 
them  of  his  newly  found  Savior.  Some  scofifed,  a  few 
scolded,  others  persecuted,  but  he  continued  to  witness 
until  one  young  man  after  another  took  the  stand  with  him. 
When  he  had  won  about  lialf  a  dozen  he  felt  they  should 
have  a  place  to  meet.  Tlie  mission  could  not  help.  The 
people  themselves  were  very,  very  poor,  for  wages  range 
from  eight  to  twenty-five  cents  a  day,  but  they  decided  to 
deny  themselves  and  have  a  chapel.  They  collected  about 
two-thirds  of  the  amount  needed  and  the  members  of  Siu 
Lam  church  gave  the  balance.  They  rented  a  small  house 
and  fitted  it  with  seats,  etc.,  fnr  services.  They  had  no 
preacher  and  the  mission  had  none  to  send,  so  this 
"Andrew,"  each  evening  after  coming  from  his  fields, 
gathered  the  people  ;  they  prayed,  sang  together,  and  he  read 
the  Bible.  He  had  no  training  but  he  did  have  an  experience 
to  tell.  He  himself  was  a  living  interpretation  of  the  gospel 
and  how  it  will  turn  a  man  from  worshiping  dead  idols 
to  the  living  God.  For  two  years  he  was  the  leader  of  the 
little  group  of  Christians  in  that  village  until  they  had 
an  organized  church  with  thirt}^  members.  Since  then  they 
have  had  a  native  pastor.  Only  one  of  all  the  converts 
■K'on  and  trained  by  this  farmer,  zvas  ever  found  unprepared 
for  baptism  zvhen  examined  by  the  missionary.  A  beautiful 
illustration  of  one  of  his  couAcrts  is  told  by  Mr.  Davis  :  A 
young  man  came  to  him  for  advice — his  tincle  had  died 
leaving  $L000  and  no  heir.  Chinese  custom  required  that 
he  buy  water  from  the  gods  and  wash  the  corpse  and  per- 
form a  few  heathen  rites  and  then  become  the  heir.  This 
looked  big  to  a  poor  Chinaman.  Llis  father  commanded 
that  he  do  it,  if  he  refused  it  meant  persecution  from  friends, 
but  he  heroically  faced  it  and  refused  to  compromise  with 
heathenism. 

55 


Our  central  church  in  Siu  Lam  is  crowded  out  of  its 
present  building-  by  its  own  membership.  When  an  evangel- 
istic meeting  is  to  be  held,  a  mat  shed  must  be  erected  in 
order  to  accommodate  the  crowds.  The  general  public  can- 
not be  accommodated  in  the  present  building.  Their  Sunday 
school  too  has  been  crowded  out  and  meets  in  sections. 
Here  is  a  call  for  an  investment  of  a  few  thousand  dollars, 
which  will  bring  large  returns.  There  are  inconceivable 
possibilities  for  this  church  in  this  great  city. 

A  New  Era  for  the  Miller  Seminary,  Siu  Lam  is  the 
home  of  the  Elizabeth  Kumler  Miller  Seminary  for  girls, 
in  charge  of  Miss  Belle  Myers  and  Miss  Llortense  Potts. 
Two  splendid  new  buildings  have  just  been  dedicated  for 
this  school.  A  mat  shed  was  erected  for  the  dedicatory 
services  and  one  thousand  tickets  of  admission  were  issued 
to  the  leading  people  of  the  city.  Because  of  lack  of  room 
more  could  not  be  invited.  Days  before  the  dedication 
people  were  offering  good  prices  to  get  a  ticket,  but  since 
none  were  sold  and  all  had  been  given  out,  they  could  not 
be  admitted. 

The  service  and  exhibit  of  work  done  by  the  girls  made 
a  deep  impression  upon  those  present.  There  are  ninety 
girls  in  the  school  and  others  coming.  For  years  they 
have  been  turned  away  for  lack  of  room.  This  school  now 
enters  upon  a  new  era  which  will  be  felt  all  over  South 
China  in  the  years  to  come.  Two  day  schools  are  also  con- 
ducted by  our  mission  in  Siu  Lam. 

A  New  Hospital.  The  medical  work  in  Siu  Lam  is  in 
charge  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Frank  Oldt.  For  many  years 
the  work  was  greatly  hindered  on  account  of  poor  facilities. 
But  the  number  of  patients  treated  has  been  growing  right 
through  the  years.  A  new  hospital  is  now  being  erected 
with  money  given  by  Mr.  James  M.  Ramsburg,  and  his 
sainted  sister  Lucretia,  of  Dallas  Center,  Iowa.  It  is  im- 
possible to  conceive  of  the  far-reaching  good  that  will 
result  from  this  new  hospital,  not  only  for  the  400,000  of 
Siu  Lam,  but  for  thousands  of  persons  living  in  towns 
adjacent. 

A  Quarterly  Meeting  at  Lung  Kong.  About  thirty  miles 
from  Siu  Lam  we  reach  Lung  Kong,  a  city  of  75,000.     It  is 

56 


Saturday,  and  to-morrow  will  be  quarterly  communion,  so 
the  missionary  spends  the  evening  with  the  members  and 
inquirers  in  a  meeting-  for  Bible  study  and  prayer.  After 
the  meeting  many  converts  are  examined  for  baptism  and 
membership  in  the  church.  This  little  congregation  had 
almost  reached  full  self-support  when  a  disastrous  flood 
swept  away  almost  everything  owned  by  its  members ; 
following  the  flood  the  city  was  invaded  by  a  mob  of  pirates 
who  stripped  the  people  and  their  homes  of  all  that  re- 
mained. With  wonderful  heroism  they  resumed  their  work. 
One  of  their  leading  members  is  a  converted  opium  smoker 
whose  conversion  came  in  answer  to  the  united  prayers  of 
the  church.  At  a  late  hour  the  missionary  climbs  to  the 
loft  of  the  chapel,  sets  up  his  folding  cot,  and  lies  down, 
the  only  white  man  in  town.  He  is  awakened  early  by  the 
noise  of  early  traders,  for  in  China  there  is  no  Sabbath. 

Long  before  the  hour  of  service  the  people  come  until 
the  chapel  is  filled.  AVhat  a  blessed  fellowship  with  hungry 
souls !  How  intently  they  listen  as  though  fearful  of  miss- 
ing a  word  and  then  gather  around  the  table  in  memory 
of  their  common  Savior  and  Lord. 

A  Hilltop  Vision.  After  the  service  we  climb  a  long 
stone  stairway  that  winds  its  way  among  thousands  of 
graves  and  some  unburied  coffins  to  the  top  of  the  mountain. 
Our  hearts  are  deeply  stirred  as  we  see  sacrifice  being  made 
to  spirits  of  ancestors.  Here  is  an  old  Chinese  mother  burn- 
ing paper  clothes  on  the  graves  of  her  loved  ones  in  the  hope 
that  in  the  spirit  world  they  may  be  transformed  into  real 
garments.  Poor,  darkened  souls  to  whom  no  message  has 
ever  come  of  a  Savior  who  has  gone  to  prepare  a  place  for 
them ! 

From  this  hilltop  we  get  such  a  vision  of  wide-spread 
need  as  stirs  the  souls  to  its  depths.  At  our  feet  lies  Lung 
Kong  with  but  one  little  chapel ;  heathen  temples  and 
shrines  crowd  the  city.  Not  far  away  we  see  the  city  of 
Lung  Shaan,  with  a  population  of  a  hundred  thousand, 
and  not  one  messenger  to  tell  of  Jesus.  Ofit"  to  the  east  is 
Lak  Lau  where  our  United  Brethren  chapel  is  the  only  light- 
house; directly  south  is  Kum  Chuk,  the  strategic  center 
of  a  district  of  a  million  people.    As  far  as  the  eyes  can  reach 

57 


China  Is   Choosing  Her  Destiny.     AVliy   Sut  Help  To  Make  It  Christ? 


we  see  cities  and  towns  teeming  with  men,  women,  and 
little  children.  We  ask  the  native  pastor  who  stands  by  onr 
side,  "Is  there  any  one  to  tell  these  of  their  Savior?"  and  he 
answers,  "No  one." 

We  turn  away  sick  at  heart  with  the  cry,  "How  long,  oh 
how  long,  must  they  continue  to  wait?" 

No  wonder  our  superintendent  from  this  field  writes: 
"When  one  reflects  upon  the  size  of  the  field,  the  readi- 
ness of  the  people  to  respond,  and  the  urgency  of  the  situa- 
tion in  the  great  Christless  districts,  one  wonders  as  we 
take  account  of  the  meager  resources  made  available  by 
the  home  church,  whether  she  is  taking  the  responsibility 
for  this  work  seriously." 

China  is  now  choosing  her  destiny.  She  is  open,  eager, 
expectant.  She  looks  to  the  United  States  as  to  no  other 
nation.  Shall  she  have  all  that  our  commerce  and  trade  can 
give,  but  be  deprived  of  that  which  she  needs  most — Jesus 
Christ?  He  counted  her  millions  worth  Calvary.  Oh, 
Christian  friends,  what  a  day  this  is  for  us  who  follow  the 
Christ  of  Calvary,  we  who  have  in  our  power  the  giving  or 
the  withholding'of  this  priceless  possession.  It  is  a  test  of 
our  love  not  alone  for  these  vast  perishing  millions,  but  a 
test  of  our  love  for  our  Lord.  "Lovest  thou  me?"  "Feed 
my  sheep." 


59 


PROGRESS  DURING  TWELVE  YEARS 

Native  Workers 

1905   SI 

1917   ISS 


Organized  Native  Churches 

1905   38 

1917  102 


Communicant  Members 

1905     1.429 


1917     7.315 


Gifts  Toward  Self-Support 

1905     $  4.5^)9 

1917     $24,502 


NEW  RECRUITS  NEEDED 

We  invite  all  to  pray  earnestly  that  the  following  new 
recruits  may  be  sent  forth  soon  to  reinforce  our  missionaries 
abroad : 

Three  doctors:  One  for  the  Philippine  Islands,  one  for 
China,  and  one  for  West  Africa. 

Seven  Evangelistic  Missionaries  :07!^  to  open  up  the  un- 
touched Ifugao  Country  in  the  Philippines,  two  to  give  all 
their  time  to  evangelistic  work  in  China,  and  four  to  supervise 
large  areas  in  Africa  ar,d  help  train  the  native  forces,  whose 
habits  are  noiv  being  fixed  in  Bible  studv,  soul-winning,  and 
Christian  stezvardship  so  as  to  bring  the  gospel  to  the  5.000 
untouched  towns  in  our  territory. 

Five  Educational  Missionaries:  One  for  China  and  four 
for  Africa.  The  government  of  Sierra,  Leone  has  decided 
to  educate  the  children  of  the  various  tribes  in  their  own 
language.  The  question  is,  Shall  the  children  now  have 
Christian  or  Mohammedan  teachers?  Well  does  Superin- 
tendent Hursh  say,  "//  the  Christian  Churcli  fails  to  grasp 
this  opportunity,  7ve  sell  our  birthright  to  the  Moslem  faith, 
and  our  cause  goes  doivn  in  defeat." 

60 


WEEK  OF  PRAYER  AND  SELF-DENIAL 
March    17-24,    1918 

The  United  Brethren  Church  is  facing  a  critical  hour. 
The  millions  of  men,  women,  and  children  in  our  mission 
fields,  unjustly  deprived  of  their  heritage,  have  a  right  to 
an  answer  from  every  member  of  our  Church.  "Have  you 
a  God  zi'ho  can  save  and  satisfy f"  "Will  you  help  usf" 
Our  thin  line  of  missionaries  at  the  front  are  demanding  an 
answer  from  the  Church  that  sent  them  out.  They  are 
hazarding  their  lives  and  are  breaking  under  the  pressure  of 
unanswered  opportunities — ungathered  harvests.  "When 
ivill  the  long  called  for  reinforcements  come?"  The  mission 
board  cannot  answer.  It  is  but  the  medium  through  which 
the  Church  works.  Every  member  of  our  churches  and 
Sunday  schools  must,  in  the  fear  of  God,  answer  these  ques- 
tions. 

Unlocked  for  Financial  Crisis 

In  this  time  of  unparalleled  opportunity,  when  seven 
evangelistic  missionaries,  four  teachers,  and  three  doctors 
should  be  on  their  way  to  the  front,  the  war  has  sent  the 
rate  of  exchange  and  the  cost  of  supplies  and  transportation 
soaring  so  high  that  our  present  missionary  work  is  im- 
periled. The  cost  of  Chinese  currency  has  so  advanced  that 
$36,000  is  now  necessary  to  do  the  same  work  that  $24,000 
did  two  years  ago. 

Every  other  denomination  is  facing  the  same  problem 
and  meeting  it  heroically.  The  German  Reformed  Church 
has  increased  its  annual  income  to  foreign  missions  from 
$130,000,  the  amount  received  a  few  years  ago,  to  $201,000 
for  the  year  just  closed.  The  Presbyterian  Church  is 
raising  $535,000  as  an  extra  fund  to  meet  war  conditions, 
and  the  Episcopal  Church  has  raised  $432,000  by  observing 
a  "one  day's  income"  plan,  and  thus  not  only  did  they  save 
their  work  from  retrenchment,  but  provided  for  a  strong 
advance. 

Shall  We  Advance  or  Retrench? 

In  addition  to  the  income  from  all  present  sources  for 
our  foreign  work,  there  must  be  brought  to  God's  altars 
before  April  1,  1918,  $51,000,  if  our  Church  is  to  keep  all  her 

61 


])resent  force  of  missionaries  and  native  workers  in  the 
field,  and  maintain  the  work  on  the  basis  of  the  past ; 
$25,000  additional  must  be  given  if  reinforcements  are  to 
be  sent. 

One  of  tzi'o  aiiszvcrs  must  be  given  between  now  and 
March  24,  1^18.  "Retrench"  or  "Advance."  Which  shall  it 
be? 

If  it  is  "retrench"  then  some  of  the  missionaries  must 
be  called  home.  Boys  and  girls  eager  for  the  truth  must 
be  taken  out  of  school  and  sent  back  to  their  heathen  homes. 
Chapels  in  the  midst  of  dense  darkness  must  be  closed  and 
multitudes  left  to  grope  in  the  night. 

Shall  our  answer  be  "advance"?  Then  the  summons 
is  to  such  earnest  praying  and  sacrificial  giving  as  we  have 
ne\'er  known. 

77; r  iveek  of  March  17-24,  1918,  has  been  set  apart  for  the 
United  Brethren  Church  to  register  her  atiszver.  It  is  hoped 
that  through  this  week  of  prayer  and  self-denial  the  poiver  of 
God  may  be  released  mightily  upon  our  entire  chnrch  member- 
ship, that  hundreds  may  be  called  of  God  for  the  ministry  and 
missionary  zvorh,  and  that  self-denial  offerings  to  the  extent 
of  at  least  one  day's  income  may  be  brought  to  God's  altars 
by  every  man,  ivoman,  and  child  in  our  communion  to  provide 
for  tJiis  imperative  need. 

Many  Answering  the  Call 

From  all  sections  of  the  Church  responses  are  coming — 
"We  have  heard  the  call  and  through  prayer  and  self-denial 
we  will  meet  it."  Bishops,  members  of  the  foreign  board 
and  committee,  and  missionaries  home  on  furlough  are 
among  the  first  to  agree  to  pray  and  practice  self-denial 
to  the  extent  of  at  least  one  day's  income. 

One  family  has  decided  to  do  without  meat  for  weeks 
in  order  to  give  $25.  One  woman  gave  up  a  new  coat.  A 
conference  superintendent  who  has  two  sons  in  the  war 
says :  "I  will  gladly  live  on  corn  bread  and  milk  during  the 
week  of  prayer  and  self-denial  to  help  the  work  of  the 
kingdom." 

A  girl  of  seventeen  voluntarily  gave  up  a  new  dress 
for  her  high  school  commencement,  that  its  value  might 
bring    school  privileges  to  girls  across. the  seas. 

62 


WEEK    OF     PRAYER    AND    SELF-DENIAL 

MARCH   17-24,   1918 


All  this 

have  I 

done  for 

thee 


What 
hast  thou 
done  for 

ine? 


Is  the  sacrifice  which  you  are  making  for  the  spread  of 
the  gospel  worthy  of  the  Christ  of  Calvary  ? 


Arc  there  not  thousands  of  men  and  women,  and  boys 
and  g'irls  who  will  be  glad  for  the  opportunit}-  to  practice 
self-denial  for  Christ,  and  to  win  souls  to  him? 

In  these  da}s  of  great  sacrifice  for  the  nation,  Christ  is 
surely  calling  us  to  intercession,  to  privations,  and  to  real 
sacrifice  for  his  kingdom,  that  through  these  he  may  reveal 
his  riches  and  power,  and  lead  his  church  to  certain  and 
glorious  victory. 

TOO  LATE  TO  SACRIFICE  FOR  CHRIST. 

A  soldier  in  France  saw  a  great  vision,  but  too  late  to 
realize  it.  He  had  been  around  the  world.  He  was  not  a 
Christian,  and  did  not  believe  in  missions.  About  a  year 
ago  he  was  wounded  in  battle  and  taken  to  a  hospital.  A 
month  before  his  death  he  wrote  to  his  friend,  Mr.  Robert 
Holmes,  in  Canada : 

"You  sent  me  a  new  Testament.  Reading  at  random  I 
was  struck  by  these  words,  'And  this  is  life  eternal,  that 
they  might  know  thee,  the  only  true  God,  and  Jesus  Christ 
whom  thou  has  sent.'  How  precious  I  have  found  these 
v/ords.  They  cause  me  to  care  not  a  jot  for  this  poor, 
maimed  body  soon  to  be  set  aside,  for,  'I've  found  a  Friend, 
oh,  such  a  Friend.' 

"I  realize  now  that  this  Friend  cares  for  every  savage 
even  as  he  cares  for  me. 

"It  is  sweet  to  die  for  England,  but  to  die  for  the  sake 
of,  and  in  the  service  of,  the  King  of  kings — that  will  never 
be  my  part.  I  envy  you  fellows  who  have  done  so  much 
for  the  cause.  I  would  gladly  die  for  it  now  when  it  is  too 
late.  Perhaps  I  might  have  done  so  had  somebody  taken 
me  in  hand  early  enough.  I  don't  blame  any  mortal.  I  am 
saying  that  something  is  wrong  with  the  scheme  of  things, 
which  fails  to  put  the  whole  world  for  Christ  right  on  the 
forefront  as  the  battle  cry  of  the  Christian  church.  My 
little  money  will  presently  be  found  devoted  to  the  cause, 
but  what  is  that?  We  can  carry  nothing  out  whither  I  go. 
My  message  is  that  all  who  are  wise  should  work  in  the 
great  service  while  it  is  day,  remembering  the  coming 
night." 

"We  must  ivork  the  zvorks  of  Him  that  sent  me,  while 

it  is  day;  the  night  cometh  when  no  man  can  work." 

64 


THE]  BOARD  OF  FOREIGN  MISSION!. 

Bishop  W.  M.  Bell.  D.D,.  President.  S.  S.  Hourh.  D.D., 
Qeneral  Secretary,  G.  A.  Lambert,  Recordlnff  Secretary, 
li,  O.  Miller,  Treasurer,  Mrs.  J.  Hal  Smith.  Special  Support 
Secretary. 

Bishops  G.  M.  Mathews,  D.D.,  H.  H.  Fout,  D.D.,  C  J, 
Kephart.  D.D.,  A.  T.  Howard.  D.D.,  W.  H.  Washlnger,  D.D., 
N.  Castle.  D.D..  W.  M.  Weekley,  D.D.,  Mrs.  L.  R.  Harford, 
Mrs.  J.  P.  Landls,  Mrs.  Albert  Kelster,  Rev.  A.  A.  Long,  D.D., 
Rev,  W.  E.  Snyder,  D.D.,  Rev.  J.  R.  Kine.  D.D.,  Professor 
J.  H.  Reubush  and  Mr.  S.  C.  Caldwell. 

executive:  committcsj. 

Rev.  W.   O.   Fries.   D.D..   Chairmam. 

Rev.  S.  S.  Hough,  D.D.,  Secretary, 

Mrs.  A.  T.  Howard. 

Rev.  J.  Q.  Huber,  D.D., 

Rev.  A.  R.  Clippinger,  D.D.. 

Mr.  I.  S.  Richmond, 

Mrs.  Alva  Kauffman. 


INFORMATION,  INSPIRATION,  AND  AMMUNITION. 

1.     Beelns   Our   Mlaslons   Across   the    Seas.  .     One   «opy,   ten 

cents,  twelve  copies,  fl.OO;  100  copies,  $S.OO. 

t.  The  "War  and  Missions.  A  strong  booklet  by  an  Inter- 
denominational committee,  especially  for  pastors.  Price, 
ten  cents. 

8.     The  Life  of  Prayer.     Five  cents  per  copy. 

4.     The  Confession  of  a  Business  Man.     Five  cents  a  copy. 

i.  A  Map  of  Bach  of  Our  Five  Fields  In  Tvro  Colors.  Size. 
20  X  24  Inches.  The  five  maps  mailed  in  one  tube, 
fifty  cents. 

6.  Our  Church  Abroafl.  A  concise  story  of  the  beglnnlnsr 
and  grrowth  of  each  of  our  foreign  missions;  their 
victories  and  needs,  and  how  the  Sunday  schools  and 
churches  can  promote  our  foreign  missionary  work.  One 
copy,  thirty  cents;  four  copies.  $1.00. 

T.  Missionary  Stereoptlcou  Lecture.  We  send  a  set  of  slides 
and  manuscript  lecture  with  each  set.  Charges,  $1.00 
plus   transportation  both  ways. 

The  above  supplies  can  be  secured  by  writing  to 


8.  S.  Hough,  Sec'y., 

404  Otterbeia  Press  BIdg., 

Dayton.  Ohio. 


Shall  Christianity  Be 
Less    Sacrificial 
Than  Patriotism?     ««. 


The  nations  of  the  world  to-day  have 
risen  to  the  heights  of  an  unlimited 
sacrificial  devotion.  Is  the  church  to 
shovi^  less  loyalty  to  Christ  and  his 
honor?  Every  soldier  dying  for  his 
country  on  a  European  battlefield, 
every  home  giving  up  its  blood  and 
tears,  is  a  summons  and  a  reproach 
to  us  men  and  women  who  have 
accepted  the  Christ  of  the  Cross,  but 
not  the  Cross  of  Christ.  If  they  have 
counted  their  cause  above  their  lives 
and  the^ir  every  possession,  why  not 
we?  What  they  freely  yield  for  their 
country,  shall  not  Christians  give  with 
joy  to  their  Lord  of  Life  and  Peace? 

ROBERT  £.  SPEER 


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